JAPANESE  GOLDFISH 

THEIR  VARIETIES  AND  CULTIVATION 


A  PRACTICAL  GUIDE  TO  THE  JAPANESE  METHODS  OF  GOLDFISH  CULTURE 

FOR  AMATEURS  AND  PROFESSIONALS 


BY  HUGH  M.  $MITH 

UNITED  STATES  DEPUTY  COMMISSIONER  OF  FISHERIES 

President  of  the  American  Fisheries  Society,  1907-8 

Secretary -General  of  the  Fourth  International  Fishery  Congress,   1908 

Fellow  of  the  American  Association  for  the  Advancement  of  Science 

Member  of  the  Washington  Academy  of  Sciences,  Biological  Society  of  Washington,  etc. 

Honorary  Member  of  the  Imperial  and  Royal  Austrian  Fishery  Society 

The  Imperial  Russian  Society  of  Fish  Culture  and  Pishing 

The  Salmon  and  Trout  Association  of  Great  Britain,  and 

Corresponding  Member  of  the  German  Sea  Fiihery  Society 


WASHINGTON 

W.  F.  ROBERTS  COMPANY.  PUBLISHERS 
1909 


tllte  1, 

s~    l/(  *       "I 

VU  i,^10 


COPYRIGHT,    1909 
BY  \V.  F.  ROBERTS  COMPANY 

INCORPORATED 

WASHINGTON,  D.   C. 


.  . 

.•••.: 


CONTENTS 


List  of  illustrations 

Introduction      •    •    • 


I — GENERAL    ASPECTS    OF    GOLDFISH    CIT.TURF.    IN 

JAPAN      

Importance   of   the  goldfish   to    the  Japanese 

people      

Origin  of  the  goldfish  and  its  culture  in  Japan 
Centers  of  the  industry 

II — JAPANESE  GOLDFISH    BREEDS 

The  Wild  Fish 

Evolution   of   the   Varieties 

The  YYakin 

The  Ryukin       

The    Ranchu 

The    Oranda    Shishigashira 

The  Denickin 

The    Deme-Ranclni 

The  \Vatonai 

The    Shukin      

The  Shulmnkin 

The    Kinranshi 

Ill — GOLDFISH  BREEDING  ESTABLISHMENTS  AND 
THEIR  GENERAL  FOCIPMENT  AMI  MAN- 
AGEMENT'   

Goldfish   farms 

General   principles   of   breeding 

The  ponds  and  the  water  supply 


PAGE 

5 
7 


9 

11 

12 

15 
IS 

17 
21 
24 
28 
32 
35 
38 
39 
40 
42 
43 


45 
45 
48 
49 


IV — THE    PARENT    FISH,    THE   EGG-LAYING.    AND 

THE   HATCHING 53 

The  care,  selection,  and  mating  of  the  brood 

fish 53 

The  spawning  ponds  and  their  preparation  .    .  55 

The  eggs,  their  care  and  development  ....  57 

V— FOOD,  GROWTH,  AND  CARE  OK  THE  FISH  ...  61 

Living  crustacean  food  and  its  cultivation  .    .  61 

Other   foods   and   their  preparation     ....  65 

Care  of  the  young  fish 67 

Growth   and   color   changes 77 

Sorting  and  selecting  the  fish 73 

Transportation    of   goldfish 79 

VI — DISEASES  AND  FATALITIES  OF  EGGS  AND  FISH  83 

VII — THE  STANDARDS  OF  QTAI.ITY  AND  TMK  TRADE 

IN    GOLDFISH 87 

Fashions,  criteria,  and  exhibitions 87 

Sales  and  prices 90 

VIII — JAPANESE  GOLDFISH  IN  AMERICA 93 

Historical   and   other   notes 93 

Goldfish  culture  for  profit 95 

Suggestions  for  maintaining  goldfish  aquaria 

in  the  home,  school,  and  office 97 

Literature  cited 105 

Index       107 


271619 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 


COLORED  PLATES  OF  JAPANESE  GOLDFISH. 
From    water-color   paintings    from 
life  by  J.  Urata 

The  Wakin 

The    Ryukin     

The  Ranchu  or  Maruko 

The  Oranda  Shishigashira 

The  Demekin 

The  Deme-Ranchu      

The  Watonai      

The  Shukin 

The  Shubunkin 

The  Kinranshi      


FACING 

PAGE 

20 
24 

,  .  28 
,  -  32 
i  .  36 
.  .  38 
.  .  38 
.  .  40 
.  .  42 
.  .  42 

PAGE 

GOLDFISH  SPAWNING  ON  WILLOW  ROOTS  IN  A  MUD 

POND 58 

COLLECTING  MINUTE  CRUSTACEANS  AS  FOOD  FOR 

GOLDFISH 64 

FEEDING  ENTOMOSTKACA  TO  YOUNG  GOLDFISH  IN 

CONCRETE  PONDS 68 

DRAWING  DOWN  A  CONCRETE  REARING  POND  ...  71 
TRANSFERRING  GOLDFISH  FRY  FROM  ONE  POND  TO 

ANOTHER 73 


I'AGE 

SELECTING    AND    SORTING    YOUNG    GOLDFISH    FOR 

REARING      76 

AN  IMPORTED  RYUKIN Frontispiece 

From  a  photograph  by  Dr.  R.  \V.  Shufeldt 

THE  WILD  GOLDFISH 16 

DIAGRAM  OF  TYPES  OF  CAUDAL  FIN 16 

DORSAL  VIEW  OF  A  HIGHLY-CULTIVATED  RYI-KIN  .  25 

After  Watase. 

TYPES  OF  THE  RANCHU  OR  MARUKO  VARIETY  .    .    •  29 

DUTCH   LION-HEAD 33 

VIEW  IN  A  TOKYO  GOLDFISH   ESTABLISHMENT  .    •  47 

After  Mitsukuri. 
REMOVING     DUST,     DIRT,     BUBBLES,     KTC.,     FROM 

SPAWNING  POND 55 

TEXT  CUTS  OF  CERTAIN  VARIETIES  OF  GOLDFISH 
After  Mitsukuri. 

Wakin      13,23 

Ryukin 26,27 

Ranchu 30,31 

Oranda  Shishigashira 32, 35 

Demekin 37 

Shukin 40 


AN  IMPORTKU  RYUKIN. 

1'rom  a  photograph  liy   L)r.   R.   W.    Shufeldt  of  a  specimen   at  the   Bureau   of   Fisheries,    Washington,    D.   C. 
The  parts  which  appear  black  are  vermilion  red  in  life.     About  four-fifths  natural  size. 


INTRODUCTION 


JIHRK  exists  in  the  L'nited  States  great  and  growing   interest   in  the  keeping  and  cultivation  of 
Japanese  and  other   races  of  goldfish.     This  interest   is  one  phase  of  the  noteworthy  amount  of 
attention  now  devoted  by  young  and  old  to  the  study  and  care  of  living  creatures,  and  is  aided  by 
the   facility  of  obtaining  at   reasonable  prices  desirable  material  for  stocking  aquaria  and  ponds. 

The  pleasures  and  profits  of  raising  goldfish  are  destined  to  be  experienced  by  many  more 
people;  each  year  thousands  of  men,  women,  an'!  children  begin  to  exhibit  an  interest  in  this  subject 
by  seeking  to  learn  where  and  how  to  secure  the  goldfish,  and  how  to  raise  and  care  for  them.  The 
demand  for  the  fish  keeps  far  in  advance  of  the  available  supply,  and  there  is  thus  created  a  need 
for  more  extensive  cultivation  and  more  establishments  where  goldfish  are  produced. 

This  little  work  is  presented  in  the  belief  that,  while  American  goldfish  culturists  and  fanciers 
have  developed  most  efficient  methods,  there  is  much  for  professionals  and  amateurs  to  learn  from  the 
Japanese,  and  that  a  discussion  of  goldfish  and  their  culture  from  the  Japanese  viewpoint  will  be  of 
practical  value  and  general  interest  to  Americans. 

While  there  have  been  published  many  works  dealing  with  the  goldfish  and  their  cultivation, 
there  is  none  that  has  just  the  scope  and  viewpoint  of  the  present  one;  and  it  is  believed  that  there  are 
herein  set  forth  certain  aspects  of  Japanese  methods  that  have  never  before  been  made  known  to 
western  readers. 


The  data  on  which  this  work  is  based  were  obtained  by  the  writer  during  two  visits  to  Japan  when, 
under  the  guidance  of  the  leading  Japanese  fishery  and  fish-cultural  authorities,  the  principal  goldfish 
breeding  establishments  were  inspected  and  information  was  Obtained  at  first  hand  from  their  proprie- 
tors. Supplementary  information  has  been  derived  from  published  papers  by  Professors  Matsubara, 
Mitsukuri,  and  Watase.  The  accompanying  colored  illustrations  of  ten  varieties  of  Japanese  goldfish 
are  made  from  paintings  from  life  by  Mr.  J.  Urata  in  Tokyo,  and  are  herewith  reproduced  through  the 
courtesy  of  Prof.  S.  Matsubara,  Director  of  the  Imperial  Fisheries  Institute,  Tokyo,  by  whom  they 
have  been  copyrighted;  these  plates  accompany  his  interesting  paper  published  by  the  Bureau  of  Fisheries 

WASHINGTON 

October  1,  1909 


I-GENERAL  ASPECTS  OF  GOLDFISH  CULTURE  IN  JAPAN 


Importance  of  the  Goldfish  to  the  Japanese  People 

HE  JAPANESE  are  the  leading  breeders  of   goldfish;   their    methods    are    the    most    original 
and  successful;  their  varieties  are  the  most  beautiful  and  interesting. 

The  goldfish  occupies  a  prominent  place  in  the  daily  lives  of  the  Japanese.     Among  the  creatures 
kept   for  purposes  of  ornament  and  amusement— monkeys,  birds,  musical  crickets,  singing  frogs, 
etc.— none  are  in  such  general  demand  or  are  employed  in  such  large  numbers  as  the  goldfish;  and 
probably    in    no    other   country    are    any    non-useful   animals   maintained  by   a   larger  proportion  of 
the  population  than  are  goldfish  in  Japan. 

Interest   in  goldfish   is  manifested   by  all   ages  and  in  every  class  of  society,  from  the  humblest 
peasant  to  the  highest  court  official.     The  small  boy  on  a  holiday  will  be  made  supremely 
happy  by  the  purchase  of  a  goldfish  costing  half  a  cent    while   a   wealthy   connoisseur   may 
give  one  hundred  and  fifty  dollars  for  a  single  pair  of  fish  of  select  breed. 

Immense  numbers  of  goldfish  are   sold  on   fete  days,  and  children  are  the  largest 
purchasers.     Goldfish   vendors,   carrying  their   ware  in  wooden  tubs  suspended   from  a 


shoulder  bar,  mingle  with  the  crowds  in  the  parks  and  on  the  streets  or  station  themselves  at  points 
of  vantage  and  display  their  living  toys  to  the  passing  throngs. 

It  is  stated  that  in  feudal  times  in  Japan,  even  in  years  when  famine  prevailed  and  hundreds 
were  dying  of  starvation,  the  demand  for  and  the  trade  in  goldfish  continued  with  hut  little 
abatement,  because  the  children  craved  the  fish  and  their  demands  could  not  be  resisted. 

The  vogue  that  the  goldfish  acquired  in  Japan  many  years  ago  and  has  retained  with  increasing 
popularity  is  an  index  of  a  significant  feature  of  the  Japanese  character.  The  love  of  the  purely 
beautiful  pervades  all  classes  of  people,  and  is  evidenced  in  many  ways  that  are  either  unknown  or 
but  little  developed  in  many  other  nations.  It  is  very  natural  that  the  esthetic  temperament  of 
the  Japanese  should  find  much  to  gratify  it  in  the  beautiful  colors  and  the  graceful  forms  and 
movements  of  the  goldfish ;  and  it  is  noteworthy  that  of  the  two  oriental  peoples  among  which 
the  cultivation  of  the  goldfish  reached  an  advanced  stage  at  an  early  date,  the  Chinese  should  have 
directed  their  efforts  mainly  to  the  production  of  the  grotesque,  bizarre,  or  horrifying,  while  the 
Japanese  strove  for  the  graceful,  harmonious,  and  pleasing. 

In  the  Japanese  homes,  goldfish  are  usually  kept  in  small  globes  suspended  in  rooms  or  in 
balconies,  or  in  ponds  or  fountains  in  the  miniature  landscape  gardens  with  which  a  large  propor- 
tion of  the  houses  are  provided. 

In  the  thousands  of  landscape  gardens,  parks,  and  temple  grounds  all  over  Japan,  there  are 
ponds  and  lakes  stocked  with  turtles,  carp,  and  goldfish ;  and  one  of  the  favorite  amusements  of 
the  crowds  that  constantly  resort  to  such  places  is  to  feed  the  turtles  and  fish.  Just  as  in  Venice 
there  is  always  a  vendor  ready  to  supply  one  with  corn  for  the  doves  of  Saint  Mark,  so  at  the 
public  resorts  in  Japan  there  is  always  a  person  to  provide  hollow  balls  of  colored  rice  flour  to  be 

10 


thrown  into  the  ponds.  The  balls  are  light  and  for  a  few  minutes  float  like  corks  while  the  fish 
push  them  about  with  their  noses  in  the  efforts  to  eat  them;  after  a  time,  becoming  water  soaked, 
they  gradually  disintegiate,  sink,  and  are  devoured. 

The  goldfish  is  a  common  theme  in  Japanese  decorative  and  industrial  art,  and  is  a  favorite 
subject  for  biological  investigation.  Some  of  the  leading  men  of  science  of  Japan  have  delved  into 
the  natural  history  of  this  fish,  and  have  written  most  entertainingly  of  its  various  phases.  Being 
a  plastic  material,  the  goldfish  when  skillfully  bred,  yields  many  surprises  to  the  biologist  as 
well  as  to  the  cultivator. 


Origin  of  the  Goldfish  and  its  Culture  in  Japan 

Many  things  that  have  been  firmly  established  in  Japan  for  centuries  in  reality  had  their  origin 
in  China,  and  among  the  more  noteworthy  of  these  is  the  highly  colored  cultivated  variety  of  gold- 
fish. The  goldfish  is  possibly  native  to  Japan,  and  fish  having  the  dull  coloration  and  simple  form 
of  the  original  wild  species  are  found  in  open  waters  all  over  Japan,  but  in  some  cases  these  are 
as  likely  to  have  been  the  progeny  of  fish  that  escaped  from  private  ponds  and  reverted  to  the  wild 

11 


type  as  to  have  been  natives.  At  any  rate,  there  is  no  evidence  of  the  existence  of  the  brilliant, 
cultivated  fish  prior  to  their  importation  from  China. 

The  history  of  the  introduction  is  lost  in  obscurity,  but  it  appears  to  be  established  that  as 
early  as  the  year  1500  some  goldfish,  probably  of  the  simplest  variety,  were  brought  from  China 
to  a  town  near  Osaka;  and  many  other  importations  were  doubtless  made  in  early  times  from  China 
and  Korea,  where  the  cultivation  of  this  fish  must  have  begun  at  a  very  remote  period. 

The  cultivation  of  goldfish  in  Japan  began  several  centuries  ago,  and  had  attained  considerable 
extent  long  before  the  founding  of  the  United  States  as  a  nation.  It  seems  that  as  early  as  the 
first  decade  of  the  eighteenth  century,  a  breeder  of  goldfish  began  business  at  Koriyama;  and  the 
author  has  visited  at  that  place  a  goldfish  farm  that  was  started  about  1763  and  has  been  in 
continuous  operation  to  the  present  time.  This  establishment  was  at  first  maintained  only  for 
pleasure,  but  later  became  a  commercial  enterprise  and  has  for  many  years  been  conducted  at  great 
profit. 

The  intioduced  variety  of  goldfish  like  various  other  things  that  the  Japanese  obtained  from 
outside  their  country,  was  vastly  improved  upon  as  a  result  of  independent  methods  of  culture 
applied  at  a  very  early  date;  and  new  varieties  were  soon  developed  that  are  still  being  cultivated. 

Centers    of  the  industry 

Goldfish  are  bred  for  pleasure  or  profit  all  over  the  Japanese  Empire,  and  it  is  only  in  the  most 
northern  island,  Hakkaido,  where  the  cold  is  intense,  that  successful  culture  is  impossible. 

The  chief  centers  of  the  industry  are  the  great  capital  city  of  Tokyo  which,  with  its  two 
million  people,  offers  a  superior  market  for  all  kinds  of  goldfish  in  addition  to  having  a  temperate 

12 


climate  most  conducive  to  successful  culture;  Koriyama,  a  small  place  near  the  ancient  capital  cities 
of  Nara  and  Kyoto,  which  also  has  excellent  marketing  facilities  and  a  salubrious  climate;  and 
Osaka,  the  Venice  of  Japan  and  the  second  city  of  the  Empiie.  Koriyama  is  the  most  important 
center,  and  has  about  three  hundred  and  fifty  goldfish  breeders  whose  annual  output  is  upward 
of  ten  million  fish.  At  some  establishments  as  many  as  six  hundred  thousand  are  produced  and 
sold  annually,  while  at  others  the  yield  may  be  only  a  few  thousands. 

Tokyo  and  Koriyama  may  be  said  to  be  the  headquarters  of  two  different  schools  of  gold- 
fish culture,  with  different  breeding  methods,  different  standards  of  excellence,  and  different 
fashions  in  fish.  The  Tokyo  school  dominates  the  northeastern  part  of  the  Empire,  and  the 
Koriyama  school  holds  sway  over  the  western  part  of  the  main  island  of  Hondo  and  the  islands 
of  Shikoku  and  Kyushu. 


II -JAPANESE  GOLDFISH  BREEDS 


The  Wild  Fish 

|HE  wild  fish  from  which  the  multicolored  and  multiformed  varieties  of  goldfish  have 
been  produced  is  a  very  plain  species,  with  nothing  to  suggest  the  wonderful 
possibilities  of  development  which  it  has  undergone.  The  moderately  elongated 
and  compressed  body  is  covered  with  large,  coarse  scales;  the  head  is  unsealed  and 
smooth;  the  fins  are  relatively  small,  and  the  color  is  uniform  olivaceous.  The 
normal  length  is  eight  to  twelve  inches. 

The  goldfish  was  originally  placed  in  the  same  genus  as  the  domesticated  Asiatic  carp,  and 
was  named  Cyprinus  aitratus  by  Linnaeus.  It  differs,  however,  from  the  common  carp  in  having 
no  barbels,  and  in  having  the  pharyngeal  teeth  in  a  single  row  on  each  side;  it  has  therefore  been 
put  in  the  same  genus  as  the  crucian  carp  or  karass,  of  European  waters,  and  its  proper  scientific 
name  is  Carassius  anratns,  which  literally  means  the  golden  or  gilded  karass.  The  goldfish  is  some- 
times not  inappropriately  called  the  gold  carp,  but  this  name  is  not  distinctive  because  a  golden  variety 
of  the  common  carp'  is  now  extensively  cultivated. 


15 


The  original  home  of  the  fish  was  China.     Authorities    do    not    appear    to   be    in    accord    as    to 
whether    the    species    was    native    to    Japan,    where  it  is  now  widely  distributed,  and  it  may  be  that 

this  point  may  never  be  conclusively  determined. 


THE  WILD  GOLDFISH 


16 


Evolution  of  the  Varieties 

In  a  group  of  fishes  of  the  carp  family  related  to  the  goldfish  there  is  a  tendency  to  albinism; 
and  doubtless  the  parent  stock  from  which  all  the  cultivated  varieties  have  sprung  was  albino  or 
partial  albino.  A  deficiency  of  dark  pigment  in  the  skin  of  the  wild  goldfish  would  leave  a  whitish, 
yellow,  or  golden  color ;  while  irregular  distribution  and  concentration  of  the  dark  pigment  would 
result  in  a  variegated  coloration,  with  blackish  or  dark  greenish  spots  or  blotches  separated  by 
yellow,  golden,  or  whitish  areas.  By  the  selection  of  such  abnormally  colored  fish  for  breeding 
purposes,  light  and  variegated  races  were  in  time  established.  Abnormalities  in  form  may  have  arisen 
in  and  been  similarly  reproduced  from  wild  fish,  but  most  probably  these  arose  in  the  course  of  the 
cultivation  of  already  established  or  incipient  color  varieties.  From  these  primitive  departures  from 
the  normal,  all  of  the  extraordinary  variations  in  form  and  color  that  we  now  possess  have  been 
produced,  after  hundreds  of  generations,  by  selected  breeding. 

One  of  the  ablest  American  biologists  and  embryologist,  the  late  Prof.  John  A.  Ryder,  called 
attention  to  the  fact  that  the  varieties  of  goldfish  "are  the  most  profoundly  modified  of  any  known 
race  of  domesticated  animal  organisms."  In  the  course  of  a  paper  published  in  1893  he  discussed  the 
origin  and  significance  of  some  of  the  modifications,  and  advanced  the  interesting  theory  that  the 

17 


greatly  enlarged  fins  in  some  of  the  varieties  is  correlated  with  a  degeneiation  of  the  muscular  system 
through  disuse,  owing  to  "their  continued  restraint  in  small  aquaria  for  many  geneiations."  The 
feeble  and  almost  totally  deficient  swimming  powers  of  certain  varieties  are  said  to  have  been  "pur- 
posely cultivated  by  oriental  fish  fanciers,"  and  the  energy  that  would  have  been  expended  "in  the 
production  of  motion  of  the  body  in  the  water  has  reacted  in  other  ways  upon  their  organization, 
and  especially  upon  the  growth  of  the  fins."  In  the  elaboration  of  this  theory,  Ryder  suggested  that 
the  enlarged  fins  may  serve  as  supplemental  respiratory  organs,  the  caudal  in  particular  being  very 
richly  supplied  with  capillaries  and  often  presenting  an  enormous  surface  for  the  possible  exchange 
of  gases;  and  he  asked  whether  this  hypertrophy  of  the  fins  may  not  have  "been  developed  partially 
in  physiological  response  to  artificial  conditions  of  respiration  *  *  *  in  the  restricted  and  badly 
aerated  tanks  and  aquaria  in  which  they  have  been  bred  for  centuries." 

It  is  not  necessary  to  discuss  the  foregoing  views,  but  it  should  be  remarked  that  the  statements 
regarding  the  breeding  of  Japanese  goldfish  in  badly  aerated  or  restricted  aquaria  and  tanks  are 
entirely  erroneous,  and  any  theory  based  on  such  an  unwarranted  assumption  is  untenable,  for.  as  will 
hereafter  be  seen,  the  Japanese  have  never  raised  goldfish  under  such  conditions,  and  the  salient  feat- 
ures of  the  various  kinds  of  ponds  in  which  they  have  for  generations  been  hatching,  rearing,  and 
holding  their  fish  are  the  ample  space  afforded  and  the  most  perfect  oxygenation  of  the  water. 

A  number  of  the  minor  and  some  of  the  major  varieties  of  goldfish  now  grown  in  America  and 
Europe  and  called  "Japanese"  are  unknown  to  the  Japanese  breeders,  and  were  either  of  Chinese  origin 
or  were  produced  under  their  new  occidental  environment,  either  with  or  without  Japanese  stock. 
While  many  ephemeral  freaks  are  necessarily  produced  in  the  course  of  the  culture  operations,  the 
only  varieties  that  are  established  and  standard  are  those  herein  described. 

18 


Ten  varieties  of  goldfish  are  now  known  and  cultivated  in  Japan.  Their  Japanese  names, 
which  are  most  appropriate  and  distinctive,  are  in  general  preferable  to  the  cumbersome  and  less 
expressive  American  names,  and  will  be  used  in  this  work.  These,  with  their  literal  equivalents  in 
our  language,  are  as  follows : 

Wakin,  or  Japanese  goldfish. 

Ryukin,  or  Liukiu  goldfish. 

Ranchu,  or  Dutch  goldfish.     Also  called  Maruko,  or  round  fish,  and  Shishigashira,  or  lion-head. 

Oranda  shishigashira,  or  Dutch  lion-head. 

Demekin,  or  protruding-eyed  goldfish. 

Deme-ranchu,  or  protruding-eyed  ranchu. 

Watonai,  or  newly  found  variety. 

Shukin,  or  autumn  brocade  goldfish. 

Shubunkin,   or   vermilion   variegated   goldfish. 

Kinranshi,   or  brocaded  goldfish. 

The  immediate  origin  of  the  more  primitive  varieties  can  not  be  stated,  being  lost  in  obscurity, 
but  the  genealogy  or  pedigree  of  six  of  the  foregoing  is  well  known.  The  origin  and  relationships 
of  the  varieties  may  be  represented  in  the  form  of  a  "family  tree,"  as  shown  on  the  following  page: 


19 


Dfme/rin 


Deme-rancAu          Watortoi  /{//irarts/ii  Oronda 


GENEALOGY  OF  THE  GOLDFISH  VARIETIES 


20 


THE    \VAKIX 

'111,       Cril.HI.-lSH 
NATURAL   SIZE 


COPYRIGHT,    1909,   BY   S.    MATSUBARA 


The  W 'a kin 
JAPANESE  GOLDFISH.     COMMON  GOLDFISH 

The  name  wakin,  meaning  Japanese  goldfish,  is  applied  to  the  simplest  and  most  primitive 
cultivated  variety,  from  which  all  the  others  have  been  directly  or  indirectly  produced.  As  it  was 
introduced  from  China,  it  can  not  properly  be  called  Japanese,  but  it  had  been  so  long  known  and 
cultivated  in  Japan  that  the  people  of  that  country  were  doubtless  justified  in  so  designating  it, 
especially  when  it  became  necessary  to  distinguish  it  from  breeds  or  varieties  introduced  from 
Korea  and  the  Liukiu  or  Ryukyu  Islands  and  named  after  those  places. 

The  wakin  as  known  today  in  Japan,  China,  Europe,  and  America  is  doubtless  quite  similar 
if  not  identical  in  all  essential  respects  to  the  earliest  examples  brought  from  China. 

In  form  the  wakin  is  moderately  elongate  and  compressed,  and  the  shape  and  size  of  its  fins 
differ  bi:t  little  from  the  wild  species.  The  caudal  fin,  however,  may  be  considerably  modified  from 
the  simple  vertical  type.  The  scales  are  large  and  their  edges  are  prominent.  The  color  is  most 
variable,  ranging  from  pure  black  to  pure  white  or  silvery,  with  uniform  gray,  brown,  olive, 
vermilion,  orange,  golden,  and  yellow  as  intermediate  colors,  which  are  often  variegated  with  black 
or  white.  The  typical  wakin  in  Japan  is  bright  red,  often  with  larger  or  smaller  areas  of  pearly 
or  silvery  white. 

A  remarkable  feature  of  the  Japanese  goldfish  that  does  not  occur  in  nature  in  any  species  of 
fishes  and  is  not  known  to  exist  in  any  other  cultivated  fishes  is  that  in  many  of  the  more  highly 
cultivated  forms  the  caudal  and  anal  fins,  instead  of  being  single  or  unpaired,  are  double  or 
paired.  The  caudal  is  the  fin  most  subject  to  variation,  and  even  in  the  wakin  it  begins  to  exhibit 

21 


the  possibility  for  that  wonderful  development  met  with  in  the  more  highly  cultivated  breeds. 
Three  types  of  caudal  fin  may  be  recognized:  (1)  the  single,  unpaired,  vertical  form  such  as 
occurs  in  the  wild  fish  and  becomes  more  elongated  and  forked  under  cultivation;  (2)  the  divided 
or  paired  type  with  the  two  parts  united  above,  hence  with  three  lobes  (one  medium,  two  lateral)  ; 
(3)  the  divided  or  paired  form  with  the  two  parts  not  united  above,  hence  with  four  lobes  that 
are  more  or  less  horizontal  when  spread.  The  second  and  third  types  are  found  in  the  most  highly 


DIAGRAM  OF  THREE  TYPES  OF  CAUDAL  FIN  IN  GOLDFISH 

cultivated    individuals    of    the    wakin    variety;    it  may    be    questioned,    however,    whether    such    fish, 
departing  so  much  from  the  simple  breed,  are  entitled  to  be  called  by  this  name. 

As  Professor  Watase  has  pointed  out,  this  division  of  the  caudal  fin  is  not  a  mere  splitting  of 
the  superficial  parts,  but  depends  on  an  actual  bilateral  separation  of  the  deep-seated  bony  elements 
from  which  the  fin  arises.  Professor  Ryder  has  expressed  the  view  that  the  double-tailed  goldfish 
were  produced  originally  by  the  orientals  shaking  or  otherwise  disturbing  the  eggs  at  the  period  of 
development  when  the  blastoderm  had  spread  over  about  a  third  of  the  yolk.  This  treatment  of  the 

22 


eggs  of  other  fishes  is  known  to  result  in  various  forms  of  double  monsters — double  heads,  partly 
double  bodies,  double  tails,  etc. — most  of  which  necessarily  die  early.  In  the  case  of  goldfish  presum- 
ably produced  in  this  way,  those  with  double  tails  were  most  likely  to  reach  maturity  because  of  the 
least  vital  parts  involved.  "These  being  selected  and  bred,"  to  quote  Ryder,  "would  in  all  probability 
hand  onward  the  tendency  to  reproduce  the  double  tail,  a  tendency  which  could  become  very  fixed 
and  characteristic  if  judicious  selection  were  maintained  by  interested  fanciers  and  breeders." 

The  wakin  is  the  largest  of  the  goldfishes.  Its  normal  length  is  6  to  10  inches,  and  it 
exceptionally  reaches  16  inches.  It  is  also  the  hardiest,  the  easiest  to  breed  and  transport,  and  the 
most  extensively  cultivated. 

When  the  wakin  escapes  from  cultivation  and  becomes  established  in  open  waters,  it  reverts 
after  a  few  generations  to  the  color  and  form  of  the  original  wild  fish,  all  the  highly  colored 
individuals  disappearing.  This  has  been  well  illustrated  in  the  Potomac  River,  where  the  escape 
of  cultivated  fish  from  the  government  ponds  in  Washington  has  resulted  in  stocking  the  river 
with  goldfish  that  are  not  recognized  as  such  by  fishermen  and  fish  dealers,  and  are  sold  in  the 
markets  under  the  very  inappropriate  name  of  "sand  perch." 


The  Ryukin 

LIUKIU  GOLDFISH.     NAGASAKI  GOLDFISH.     FRINGETAIL  GOLDFISH 

Under  the  name  ryukin  the  Japanese  recognize  a  variety  that  has  long  been  cultivated  and 
that  probably  was  bred  from  ancestors  similar  to  the  wakin  but  became  separated  from  the  wakin 
stem  at  a  very  early  period  in  the  history  of  goldfish  culture.  It  has  been  contended  by  some 
persons  that  the  ryukin  is  a  cross  between  the  wakin  and  the  ranchu,  but  this  does  not  seem  likely. 
The  term  ryukin  is  derived  from  Ryukyu,  the  Japanese  rendering  of  the  Chinese  Liukiu  or  Loochoo, 
the  name  of  the  extensive  group  of  islands  lying  between  Formosa  and  the  mainland  of  Japan ; 
and  doubtless  indicates  the  origin  of  this  variety  or  at  least  the  route  by  which  it  entered  Japan. 
The  characteristic  features  of  this  variety  are  the  greatly  shortened  body,  the  rounded  and 
bulging  abdomen,  and  the  long,  flowing  fins.  The  back  is  elevated,  the  head  rather  pointed  in 
profile  but  broad  when  viewed  from  above,  the  lateral  line  makes  a  marked  compound  curve,  and 
the  shortening  of  the  body  in  its  long  axis,  results  in  strong  curvature  of  the  spine  that  verges  on 
the  anal  fin  is  partly  concealed  by  the  caudal.  The  particular  point  to  which  this  variety  is  bred, 
deformity;  but  this  is  amply  compensated  for  by  the  beauty  of  fins  and  colors.  The  caudal 
exhibits. the  most  striking  development.  In  the  more  highly  cultivated  fishes  it  is  as  long  as  the 
body  or  even  longer ;  it  is  either  united  or  split  in  the  median  line,  and  its  delicate  folds  are  so 
ample  that  they  would  completely  cover  the  body  if  properly  applied.  The  depth  of  the  fork 
equals  half  or  more  than  half  the  total  length  of  the  fin.  The  anal  fin  is  either  single  or  double, 
and  its  base  is  nearly  vertical  and  beneath  the  two  parts  of  the  caudal,  while  its  pointed  extremity 
may  extend  beyond  the  middle  of  the  fork  of  the  caudal.  The  high  dorsal  fin  extends  beyond  the 
base  of  the  caudal,  and  the  pectoral  and  ventral  fins  far  overlap  the  ventral  and  anal  respectively. 

24 


THE  RYUKIN 

FRINGETAIL  GOLDFISH 

NATURAL  SIZE 


COPYRIGHT,    1909,   BY   S.    MATSUBARA 


DORSAL  VIEW  OF  A  HIGHLY-CULTIVATED  RYUKIN 
Four-fifths   natural   size 


25 


The  colors  of  the  ryukin  are  most  attractive.  A  unicolored  fish  is  rarely  seen,  but  a  single 
color  may  largely  predominate.  The  color  that  is  practically  always  present  is  vermilion,  which 
occurs  on  body,  head,  and  fins,  and  is  often  mottled  with  white.  A  golden  reflection  overlies  the 
red  on  the  body  and  head,  and  sometimes  extend  on  its  fins.  The  most  highly  esteemed  specimens 


are  those  with  variegated  back  and  sides. 


' 


The  ryukin  is  relatively  small.  The  maximum  length  from  mouth  to  tip  of  tail  probably  never 
exceeds  7^/2  or  8  inches,  of  which  about  half  represents  the  caudal  fin. 

A  lot  of  particularly  fine  examples  of  this  variety  presented  to  the  United  States  Bureau  of 
Fisheries  by  the  Onuma  Fish  Culture  Association  of  Iburaki,  Japan,  was  first  exhibited  at  the 
Jamestown  Exposition  and  then  in  Washington.  These  fish  have  the  caudal  fin  divided  to  its  base 
and  longer  than  the  body,  the  anal  fin  long  and  double,  and  brilliant  coloration. 

In  repose,  this  variety  assumes  either  a  horizontal  or  slightly  oblique  position  with  the  head 
inclined  upward  or  downward ;  the  tail  fin  is  pendulous  and  hangs  in  graceful  folds  like  a  soft 


26 


veil;  and  the  dorsal  fin  becomes  folded  on  itself.  When  actively  swimming  the  tail  and  caudal  fin 
are  rapidly  moved  from  side  to  side  in  a  few  spasmodic  efforts,  but  when  in  gentle  motion  the  large 
pectoral  fins  are  the  propelling  agents,  and  the  beautiful  caudal  fin  spreads  out  passively  in  a 
horizontal  direction,  the  two  halves  well  separated.  When  feeding  on  the  bottom,  the  fish  assumes 
a  vertical  position,  and  when  resting  on  a  horizontal  surface  the  most  elevated  part  of  the  body- 
is  the  posterior  extremity  of  the  caudal  peduncle. 

A  full-grown  ryukin  of  select  breed  is  one  of  the  most  beautiful  of  fishes,  and  would  seem  to 
satisfy  all  the  requirements  of  the  ordinary  fancier.  Such  a  fish,  with  its  long,  flowing,  graceful 
fins,  slowly  swimming  in  quiet  dignity,  has  been  likened  by  Professor  Mitsukuri  to  the  Japanese 
court  ladies  of  olden  times,  dressed  in  long  robes  and  walking  with  sedate  grace  and  dignity. 

The  ryukin  is  very  extensively  grown,  and  is  exported  to  America  and  Europe  in  large  numbers. 
It  is  a  hardy  variety,  stands  transportation  well,  and  is  altogether  one  of  the  most  desirable  forms 
for  cultivation  in  America  and  one  of  the  most  attractive  fishes  for  ponds  and  aquaria. 


The  Ranchu 

MARUKO.     SHISHIGASHIRA.     KOREAN  GOLDFISH 

Literally  translated,  the  name  ranchu  means  Holland  worm.  The  significance  is  not  apparent, 
except  in  the  fact  that  in  early  times  any  new  or  strange  animal  or  plant  or  production  was  regarded 
as  of  Dutch  origin  and  named  accordingly.  Another  and  a  later  name  in  very  general  use  is  maruko, 
meaning  round  fish.  This  variety  is  called  also  Chosen,  or  Korean,  goldfish,  in  allusion  to  a  possible 
origin  or  a  possible  route  from  China  to  Japan.  There  is  usually  a  peculiar  growth  or  wart-like 
protuberance  on  the  head,  and  this  gives  rise  to  other  names — shishigashira  and  shishigashira 
ranchu,  lion-head  and  lion-head  ranchu. 

The  wide  departure  of  the  ranchu  from  the  original  form  suggests  that  the  parent  stock  must 
have  been  a  very  early  offshoot  of  the  wakin  stem,  probably  earlier  than  the  ryukin  and  the  demekin, 
which  are  the  other  more  primitive  types  now  grown  in  Japan. 

The  ranchu  is  easily  recognized  by  its  short,  rounded  body,  broad  head,  short  caudal  fin,  and 
deficient  dorsal  fin.  As  the  length,  depth,  and  breadth  of  the  body  are  about  equal,  and  as  the 
back  and  belly  are  broad  and  rounded  and  the  caudal  peduncle  very  short,  the  form  of  the  body 
proper  is  almost  globular  and  a  median  cross  section  would  be  a  nearly  perfect  circle.  The  head  is  short 
and  as  broad  as  deep,  and  the  snout  is  broad,  short,  and  rounded.  The  back  is  nearly  straight  or 
only  slightly  elevated  and  shows  no  trace  of  a  fin.  The  caudal  is  short  and  three-lobed,  with  the 
lobes  rounded  and  the  two  lateral  ones  having  a  tendency  to  spread  horizontally.  The  pectoral  and 
ventral  fins  are  small  and  present  no  peculiarities.  The  anal  is  short  and  double.  A  curious  sickle- 
shaped  appendage  sometimes  appears  on  the  dorsal  edge  of  the  caudal  fin. 

28 


THE  RANGHU  OK   MARTKO 
KAX  GOI.IIFISH 


COPYRIGHT,     1909,     BV    S. 


TYPES  OF  THE  RANCHU  OR   MARUKO  VARIETY   OF  JAPANESE   GOLDFISH 

From  a  water-color  painting  from   life,   made   for   the   author   in   Tokyo,    by    K.    Ito.      One-half   natural 


29 


Up  to  the  time  the  fish  is  two  or  three  years  old,  the  head  does  not  show  any  peculiar  features, 
but  it  then  begins  to  develop  a  mass  having  the  appearance  of  a  warty  tumor.  In  some  specimens 
the  warts  are  of  uniform  size  and  very  regular  distribution,  in  others  they  are  irregular  in  size  and 
shape.  The  warts  are  soft  to  the  touch,  and  represent  simply  the  enlargement  of  the  normal 
papillae  of  the  skin  of  the  head ;  and  so  far  as  known  the  mass  does  not  take  on  any  malignant 
character.  The  amount  of  surface  covered  by  the  growth  varies,  and  this,  together  with  differences 


in  the  warts  themselves,  gives  rise  to  several  subvarieties.  In  the  lion-head  proper  the  entire  head 
except  the  lower  jaw  is  covered  with  large  red,  pink,  or  white  warts,  and  the  head  and  snout  are 
thus  greatly  broadened.  In  the  form  known  as  the  tokin,  or  capped  or  hooded  goldfish,  there  is  on 
top  of  the  head  a  mass  of  warts  projecting  one-half  to  three-fifths  of  an  inch  above  the  surface  and 
sharply  defined  all  around.  The  warty  growth  is  sometimes  entirely  white,  and  may  contrast 
strongly  with  the  colors  of  adjacent  parts.  Fish  thus  colored  are  called  hiragashira,  or  white-heads. 
As  white  warts  are  nearly  always  smaller  than  red  warts  and  the  growth  is  thus  less  prominent, 
these  fish  are  known  also  as  shiragashira,  or  flat-heads. 


30 


The  color  of  the  ranchu  is  quite  variable.  Originally  the  color  seems  to  have  been  more  or 
less  uniform,  and  at  present  the  most  popular  fish  are  those  with  a  uniformly  golden  or  red  body 
and  a  bright  red  head;  about  twenty  years  ago,  however,  examples  with  variegated  backs  began  to 
be  produced,  and  such  are  now  cultivated  in  large  numbers.  A  striking  color  phase  sometimes  met 
with  is  a  white  fish  with  individual,  regularly  distributed  scales  of  the  back  and  sides  bright  red, 
and  with  the  head  pink.  An  otherwise  white  fish  may  have  bright  red  fins  and  red  head. 

A  full-grown  ranchu  is  6  inches  long,  including  the  caudal  fin.  The  largest  size  attained  appears 
to  be  about  7y*  inches. 

The  ranchu  is  a  clumsy  fish,  with  swimming  powers  reduced  to  a  minimum.  The  absence 
of  dorsal  fin  combined  with  the  neaily  globular  body  has  resulted  in  a  loss  of  ability  to  maintain  a 
normal  position,  and  in  consequence  the  fish  often  swims  upside  down  or  vertically  with  the  head 
downward.  The  variety  is  weak,  delicate,  and  difficult  to  keep ;  and  although  very  extensively  grown 
in  Japan  has  rarely  been  exported  to  foreign  countries.  Limited  numbers  have  been  brought  to 
the  United  States  from  Europe  or  directly  from  Japan,  but  the  fish  is  known  to  very  few  people 
in  this  country.  Its  cultivation  should  be  more  generally  undertaken  both  on  account  of  itself  and 
because  of  the  opportunities  afforded  for  producing  new  forms  by  crossing  with  other  varieties. 


The  Oranda  Shishigashira 

DUTCH  LION-HEAD 

The  orancla  shishigashira,  or  Dutch  lion-head,  did  not  originate  in  Holland,  but  was  so-called 
according  to  Japanese  custom  because  it  was  a  new  or  strange  production.  It  was  first  bred  at 
Koriyama  or  Osaka  about  1840,  and  was  produced  by  crossing  the  ranchu  and  the  ryukin.  It 
possesses  the  peculiar  cephalic  excrescences  of  the  former  and  the  flowing  drapery  of  the  latter,  and  is 
perhaps  the  most  striking  type  of  goldfish,  representing  the  highest  development  along  the  two  lines 
indicated. 


The  body  is  less  elevated  than  in  the  ryukin  and  more  elongate  than  in  the  ranchu.  As  adult  age 
is  neared,  a  warty  mass  develops  on  the  head;  this  excrescence  varies  in  extent,  sometimes  covering 
the  entire  top  and  sides  of  head,  sometimes  forming  a  cap  from  the  eyes  backward.  In  some 
specimens  the  normally  broad  head  is  still  further  broadened  by  the  lateral  growth,  and  the  eyes  are 


32 


THE  ORAXDA  SHISHIGAS1IIRA 

DUTCH    LION-HEAD 

NATURAL  SIZE 


COPYRIGHT,    1909,   BY   S.    MATSUBARA 


DUTCH  LION -HEAD 

From  a  water-color  painting  from  life,  made   for   the   author   in   Tokyo,   by   K.    Ito.      One-half   natural   size 


33 


invisible  from  above.  All  of  the  fins  are  large.  The  dorsal  base  is  long  and  occupies  two-thirds  of  the 
length  of  the  back,  sometimes  arising  near  the  head  and  sometimes  much  posterior  thereto.  The 
caudal  is  three-lobed,  four-lobed,  or  bag-like,  and  may  equal  or  even  exceed  the  entire  length  of 
the  body  of  the  fish.  In  its  graceful  folds  and  delicate  texture  the  caudal  resembles  that  of  the  ryukin. 
The  long,  double  anal  surrounds  the  terminal  vent. 

In  color  the  oranda  is  either  plain  or  variegated.  Up  to  twenty  years  ago  fish  with  variegated 
backs  were  not  known,  but  since  then  red-and-white  fish  have  been  common.  The  plain  red  fish 
never  show  the  rich  golden  iridescence  of  the  ranchu.  Some  fish  are  uniformly  velvety  black  with 
golden  reflections  below;  some  are  red  with  the  abdomen  canary  yellow  instead  of  white;  and  various 
other  colors  are  met  with.  The  warty  mass  may  be  white,  pink,  vermilion,  orange-red,  black,  or 
variegated.  The  fins  are  usually  bright  red,  with  more  or  less  white  on  the  caudal.  A  strikingly 
beautiful  large  male  oranda  seen  by  the  author  in  Osaka  had  a  red  head,  a  yellow-golden  body, 
a  black  back,  and  black  fins. 

This  variety  when  originally  produced  was  only  2  to  3  inches  long,  but  now  it  is  one  of  the 
largest  forms  cultivated.  The  ordinary  length  of  mature  fish  is  4  to  5  inches,  with  the  caudal  fin 
as  much  longer.  The  largest  specimens  have  the  body  and  caudal  each  over  6  inches  long,  and 
weigh  nearly  20  ounces. 

The  oranda  shishigashira  is  extensively  bred  in  Tokyo,  Osaka,  Koriyama,  and  other  places, 
and  is  one  of  the  favorite  varieties,  combining  the  beautiful  and  the  curious  in  a  striking  degree. 
In  hardiness  it  is  between  the  ranchu  and  the  ryukin. 


34 


In  a  number  of  places  in  Japan  a  rather  strongly  marked  sub-variety  of  this  form  has  been 
developed,  the  peculiarities  being  a  short  tail  and  a  brassy  color ;  it  is  called  the  shishi,  or  lion, 
and  is  perhaps  entitled  to  be  considered  a  distinct  variety. 


» 


The  Demekin 

POPEYE  GOLDFISH.     TELESCOPE-FISH 

The  name  demekin  is  given  by  the  Japanese  to  a  goldfish  well  known  in  Europe  and  America 
as'  the  telescope-fish.  The  Japanese  term,  which  signifies  popeye  goldfish,  is  much  to  be  preferred ; 
deme  means  "protruding  eyes."  "Telescope"  is  a  singularly  inappropriate  name,  because  the  eyes 
are  not  telescopic,  i.  e.,  long-sighted,  but  are  extremely  myopic,  or  short-sighted.  The  Chinese  call 
this  variety  the  dragon-eyes. 


35 


Although  this  variety  is  almost  always  called  Japanese  in  foreign  writings,  as  a  matter  of 
fact  it  was  developed  in  China  and  was  unknown  in  Japan  until  the  close  of  the  war  with  China 
(1894-5).  The  Japanese  have,  however,  improved  on  the  original  importation.  The  variety 
doubtless  came  into  existence  at  a  comparatively  early  date,  and  has  undergone  much  modification 
of  form  and  color  in  China. 

The  special  feature  of  this  variety  is  the  lateral  protrusion  of  the  large  eyeballs.  The  extent 
of  the  protrusion  differs  in  different  types  or  individuals,  in  some  being  very  slight,  in  others 
strongly  marked.  The  age  of  the  fish  modifies  the  condition ;  when  first  hatched  and  for  about  a 
year  thereafter,  the  eyes  are  normal  in  size  and  position,  but  in  the  further  course  of  growth  the 
protrusion  gradually  develops.  Sometimes  even  in  full-grown  fish  only  one  eye  protrudes,  the  other 
being  normal. 

The  body  is  rather  short,  the  back  is  elevated  and  the  ventral  outline  much  decurved ;  the  head 
is  broad,  and  the  snout  is  rounded  and  very  short.  As  originally  introduced  from  China,  the 
demekin  had  a  short  caudal  fin,  but  the  Japanese  have  given  it  a  long,  flowing  caudal,  and  have 
improved  the  fish  in  several  other  minor  particulars.  The  anal  is  double,  and  it  and  all  the  other 
fins  are  long. 

The  demekin  rarely  shows  a  brilliant  coloration.  The  usual  colors  are  a  uniform  black,  or  a 
pale  red  or  pale  reddish-yellow  with  small  black  spots  or  irregular  black  areas ;  in  the  variegated 
form  the  fins  may  be  reddish,  blackish,  or  blackish  with  pale  red  or  orange  base.  Sometimes, 
especially  in  fish  of  pure  Chinese  breed,  there  may  be  three  or  four  irregularly  distributed  or 
mottled  colors  in  a  single  fish. 


36 


THE  DEMEKIN 
TELESCOPE-FISH 

NATURAL  SIZE 


COPYRIGHT,    1909,   BY   S.   MATSUBAHA 


This  variety  is  rather  small.  A  fish  with  body  5  inches  long  is  considered  very  large,  and  the 
average  is  much  less.  The  caudal  fin  is  shorter  than  the  body  proper. 

This  curious  and  interesting  variety  is  now  extensively  grown  in  parts  of  Japan,  and  it  or  the 
original  Chinese  form  is  common  in  America  and  Europe.  The  fish  has  very  defective  sight  and 
is  unable  to  adapt  itself  to  the  protruding  eyeball,  for  in  the  adult  stage  it  is  very  likely  to  injure 
the  eyes  by  swimming  against  hard  objects,  and  so  becomes  blind.  The  fish  is  solitary  in  its  habits, 
and  does  not  swim  with  its  fellows,  in  this  respect  differing  from  all  the  goldfish  long  cultivated  in 
Japan. 


37 


The  Deme-Ranchu 

POPEYE  RANCHU.    TELESCOPE-FISH.     CELESTIAL 

The  Japanese  have  bestowed  the  name  deme-ranchu  on  a  variety  whose  acquaintance  they  have 
very  recently  made  combining  characters  of  the  demekin  and  the  ranchu.  Americans  became  familiar 
with  this  fish  much  earlier  than  the  Japanese,  and  called  it  the  celestial,  in  allusion  to  the  peculiar 
direction  of  the  eyes.  Professor  Mitsukuri  suggested  the  name  "astronomical  telescope-fish"  for  the 
same .  reason. 

When  a  person  sees  this  variety  for  the  first  time,  he  is  likely  at  once  to  assume  a  Chinese 
origin  from  its  grotesque  appearance.  The  fish  did  in  fact  originate  in  China,  and  was  unknown  in 
Japan  until  1901  or  1902,  although  long  before  that  time  it  was  often  ascribed  to  Japan  in  western 
countries.  Demekin  and  ranchu  are  evident  in  its  construction,  although  the  former  factor  must 
have  been  of  a  somewhat  different  type  from  that  known  in  Japan. 

The  general  shape  is  like  the  ranchu,  the  body  being  shortened,  the  vertebral  column  strongly 
curved  upward,  the  back  and  head  very  broad,  and  the  abdomen  distended  laterally,  so  that  the  globular 
form  is  approached.  The  eyes  are  very  large,  and  in  highly  developed,  full-grown  fishes  their  diameter 
is  more  than  half  the  length  of  the  head.  The  "telescopic"  feature  varies  from  a  moderate  bulging  to  an 
extraordinary  degree  of  protrusion  that  may  exceed  the  diameter  of  the  eye.  Along  with  this  elonga- 
tion of  the  eyeball  there  is  a  tendency  to  turn  upward,  and  in  the  typical  deme-ranchu  the  eyes  no 
longer  point  horizontally,  but  vertically,  having  changed  their  direction  90  degrees,  and  the  pupils 
look  straight  toward  the  sky.  It  is  to  such  fish  that  the  name  "celestial"  applies. 

38 


THE  DEME-RANCHU 

POPEYE  RANCHU 

NATURAL  SIZE 


COPYRIGHT,    1909,   BY   S.    MATSUBARA 


J 


.-• 


THE  WATONAI 
FRINGETAIL  W AKIN- 
NATURAL  SIZE 


COPYRIGHT,    1909,   BY   S.    MATSUBARA 


The  dorsal  fin  is  absent.  The  caudal  is  long,  widely  spreading,  and  with  the  lower  lobes 
extending  at  right  angles  to  the  long  axis  of  the  body;  its  length  may  exceed  that  of  the  body. 

The  coloration  is  similar  to  that  of  the  demekin:  there  may  be  a  uniform  black  or  pale  orange, 
or  both  of  these  colors  may  be  present  in  varying  proportions. 

The  dislocation  of  the  eyeballs  in  this  variety  goes  so  far  as  to  produce  a  genuine  monstrosity. 
The  fish  has  very  feeble  swimming  powers  and  seldom  exerts  them,  but  remains  solitary  at  the 
bottom  of  the  aquarium  or  pond  resting  on  its  abdomen.  The  vitality  is  low,  the  ability  to  repro- 
duce is  impaired,  and  spawning  occurs  only  rarely.  For  all  these  reasons  the  culture  of  the  deme- 
ranchu  is  not  popular  or  extensive. 

The  W 'atonal 

FRINGETAIL  WAKIN 

The  euphonious  Japanese  name  watonai,  according  to  Professor  Matsubara,  means  "a  variety 
hitherto  found  neither  in  Japan  nor  China."  English  names  that  may  be  used  are  Japanese  fringe- 
tail  and  fringetail  wakin. 

The  watonai  was  produced  naturally  in  a  pond  containing  brood  specimens  of  the  wakin,  ryukin, 
ranchu,  and  oranda  shishigashira,  and  represent?  a  hybridization  of  the  two  first-named  varieties. 
It  came  into  existence  in  Tokyo  about  1880,  and  was  first  exhibited  at  a  fisheries  exhibition  held  in 
Tokyo  in  1883. 

In  general  form  this  fish  is  similar  to  the  wakin,  but  the  body  is  shorter,  thicker,  and  rather 
deeper,  and  all  the  fins  are  larger.  The  caudal  is  shaped  as  in  the  ryukin,  and  is  nearly  as  long  as 
the  body.  The  color's  are  usually  variegated  red  and  white. 

39 


This  fish,  whose  parentage  is  so  apparent,  combines  the  hardiness  of  the  wakin,  the  long,  grace- 
ful fins  of  the  ryukin,  and  the  rich  coloring  of  both.  Its  size  equals  or  exceeds  that  of  the  ryukin, 
but  does  not  reach  that  of  the  largest  wakin. 

The  Shukin 

AUTUMN  GOLDFISH.     LONGTAIL  RANCHU 

The  name  shukin  was  given  by  Professor  Matsubara  to  a  variety  produced  at  Tokyo  in  1897, 
and  apparently  independently  at  Osaka  about  the  same  time,  by  the  crossing  of  the  ranchu  and  the 
oranda  shishigashira.  The  name  means  literally  "autumn  brocade,"  and  was  applied  in  allusion  to 


THE   SHUKIN 

LONGTAIL  RANCHU 

NATURAL  SIZE 


COPYRIGHT,    1909,  BY   S.    MATSI:BARA 


its  bright  red  coloration  suggestive  of  the  beautiful  autumnal  foliage  of  the  Japanese  maples.  This 
variety  was  not  perfected  immediately  but  required  several  generations  of  selected  breeding  of  the 
progeny  of  three-year  old  fish  of  the  two  varieties  mentioned.  The  form  is  now  well  established, 
but  has  a  tendency  to  reassert  characters  of  the  oranda  which  were  sought  to  be  eliminated. 

The  shape  of  the  body  and  head  is  typically  rauchuan,  although  the  lateral  swelling  of  the  abdo- 
men is  not  excessive.  The  head  shows,  in  variable  degree,  the  warty  growth  on  the  head  that  is 
characteristic  of  both  parents.  All  of  the  fins  are  longer  than  in  the  ranchu.  The  four-lobed 
caudal  is  as  long  as  or  longer  than  the  fish  proper,  and  has  the  peculiar  texture  that  permits  the 
most  graceful  drooping  and  waving.  The  anal  is  double  and  long,  and  the  ventrals  extend  far  beyond 
the  base  of  the  caudal.  The  dorsal  fin  is  absent,  Imt  in  the  first  generation  of  the  cross  this  fin  appears 
in  over  ninety  per  cent  of  the  young,  usually  in  the  form  of  one  to  three  rudimentary  rays. 

The  shukin  of  select  breed  has  a  bright  golden  or  red  body,  a  red  head  with  red  excrescences, 
and  red-and-white  fins ;  but  variations  in  color  are  numerous. 

A  size  of  9  to  10  inches  is  attained,  the  caudal  fin  constituting  about  half  the  length.  A  five- 
year-old  fish  examined  by  the  author  in  Tokyo  had  a  body  4l/2  inches  long  and  a  caudal  fin  somewhat 
longer. 

This  is  one  of  the  most  beautiful  and  attractive  varieties,  and  will  well  repay  efforts  at  culti- 
vation. Of  the  three  recently  perfected  varieties,  it  is  the  most  popular  among  the  Japanese.  Owing 
to  its  greater  development  of  fins,  its  swimming  powers  are  superior  to  those  of  the  ranchu. 


41 


The  Shubunkin 
SPECKLED  GOLDFISH.     SPOTTED  GOLDFISH.     VERMILION  VARIEGATED  GOLDFISH 

According  to  its  sponsor,  Professor  Matsubara,  the  name  shubunkin  means  "vermilion  reel  dappled 
with  different  hues."  As  distinctive  English  designations,  the  names  speckled  goldfish,  spotted 
goldfish,  and  vermilion  variegated  goldfish  may  be  employed. 

This  is  a  large,  graceful  form,  showing  combinations  of  color  not  found  in  any  other  Japanese 
varieties.  It  came  into  existence  in  1900,  and  is  the  outcome  of  the  breeder's  efforts  to  produce  a 
fish  that  shows  the  multivariegated  speckles  or  mottlings  sometimes  seen  in  the  Chinese  demekin  but 
not  in  any  of  the  older  varieties  grown  in  Japan.  The  hybrid  was  effected,  according  to  Professor 
Matsubara,  by  the  mating  of  the  demekin  and  the  wakin,  of  which  an  equal  number  of  each  sex 
and  of  each  variety  was  selected  for  the  purpose,  the  demekin  having  black  dapples  on  a  vermilion 
or  purplish  body,  and  the  wakin  being  variegated  with  red,  black,  bluish,  and  white.  The  results 
of  this  cross  were  interesting  as  showing  the  possibilities  of  further  experiments  of  this  kind.  Some 
of  the  young  had  the  form  of  the  wild  goldfish  and  the  peculiar  markings  of  the  demekin ;  some 
resembled  the  wakin ;  some  had  the  form  of  the  demekin.  About  twenty  per  cent  of  the  progeny 
were  of  the  special  type  sought  to  be  produced.  This  has  been  regularly  bred,  and  has  given  rise  to 
some  new  and  interesting  color  phases. 

In  the  standard  fish  of  this  variety  the  body  is  rather  long  and  compressed,  the  dorsal  and 
ventral  outlines  are  decidedly  curved,  the  caudal  peduncle  is  very  distinct,  and  the  scales  are  less 
conspicuous  than  in  other  varieties.  The  dorsal  fin  is  elevated  and  wavy;  the  pectorals,  ventrals, 

42 


THE  SHUBUNKIN* 

SPECKLED  GOLDFISH 

NATURAL  SIZE 


COPYRIGHT,    1909,   BY   S.    MATSUBARA 


THE  KINRAXSHI 
BROCAnED  GOLDFISH 

XATVRAL  SIZE 


COPYRIGHT,    1909,   BY   S.    MATSUBARA 


and  anal  are  moderately  elongated,   the  last  being   simple;   and   the  caudal   is   bilobed   and   deeply 
forked,  and  three-fifths  to  two-thirds  the  length  of  the  body. 

The  shubunkin  normally  has  a  peculiar  mottled  coloration,  with  small,  irregularly  distributed 
black  spots  on  body  and  fins  as  a  characteristic  feature.  The  mottling  in  one  individual  may  com- 
prise vermilion,  together  with  black,  white,  bluish,  purple,  or  other  colors.  The  color  is  often  bright 
red,  spotted  with  black;  and  occasionally  a  fish  is  produced  that  is  uniformly  purple — something 
quite  unknown  in  the  parent  stock  on  either  side. 


The  Kinranshi 
BROCADED  GOLDFISH 

This  latest  addition  to  the  Japanese  varieties  of  goldfish  was  called  kinranshi  by  Professor 
Matsubara,  the  literal  meaning  of  the  name  being  "goldfish  with  brocaded  figures."  The  variety 
was  produced  a  few  years  ago  by  Mr.  Akiyama  Kichigoro,  a  celebrated  goldfish  culturist  of  Tokyo. 
The  desire  being  to  develop  a  new  variety  lacking  the  dorsal  fin,  20  selected  male  and  female  ryukins 
were  crossed  with  the  same  number  of  selected  ranchus,  with  the  result  that  in  one-third  of  the 
progeny  the  dorsal  was  entirely  absent,  while  in  the  others  the  dorsal  was  normal  or  was  represented 
by  spines  or  protuberances. 

This  variety,  as  now  established  after  five  or  six  generations,  has  an  elongate  and  rather  thick 
body,  gently  arched  back,  and  small  fins,  the  caudal  being  double.  The  colors  are  showy,  consisting 
of  red,  black,  and  white  in  varying  proportions. 

43 


HI-GOLDFISH  BREEDING  ESTABLISHMENTS,  AND  THEIR 
GENERAL  EQUIPMENT  AND  MANAGEMENT 


Goldfish  Farms 

|HE  cultivation  of  goldfish  in  Japan  is  conducted   in   open-air   ponds,    not   in   aquaria, 
troughs,    or   tubs   within   doors   as  is  often  the  case  with  goldfish  fanciers  in  America. 
The  goldfish  farms  are  necessarily  much  alike  and  are  conducted  in  the  same  general 
way,    the    principal    differences    being    those    dependent    on    the    magnitude    of    the 
operations.     The  number  and  size  of  the  ponds  vary  considerably ;  some  breeders 
have   only   a    few   ponds   of   small  area,  otheis  have  numerous  ponds  with  a  very 
large    aggregate   area.      There   are,    however,    differences   in   the   pond    systems   occasioned   by   local 
conditions,   by   individual   or   regional    practices,    and  by  the  particular  varieties  to  which  most  atten- 
tion is  given ;  and  different  methods  of  culture  are  required  for  the  different  kinds  of  fish. 

The  proprietors  of  the  farms  have  their  residence  in  close  proximity  to  the  ponds,  often  sur- 
rounded by  them ;  and  they  carry  on  a  large  part  of  the  practical  work  in  rooms  in  which  they  and 
their  families  live.  There  is  no  such  thing  as  a  goldfish  hatchery  in  the  sense  of  a  special  building 
devoted  to  the  purpose. 


45 


To  inspect  any  of  the  more  extensive  goldfish  farms  in  Tokyo  or  Koriyama  is  a  most  interesting 
and  delightful  experience,  whether  a  person  be  a  goldfish  fancier  or  only  a  casual  visitor.  The 
sight  afforded  by  the  fishes  of  different  breeds  and  sizes,  with  their  brilliant  coloration,  graceful 
appendages,  and  peculiar  movements,  can  hardly  be  rivalled  at  any  other  fish-cultural  establishments 
in  the  world.  Additional  attractions  usually  to  be  seen  are  little  ponds  containing  tortoises,  red  and 
variegated  carp,  and  various  other  water  creatures  cultivated  for  use  or  ornament. 

A  very  old  goldfish  breeding  station  in  the  outskirts  of  Tokyo  inspected  by  the  author  has  a 
pond  area  of  44,000  square  feet  and  an  annual  output  of  about  500,000  goldfish,  in  addition  to  which 
golden  carp  and  common  carp  are  grown.  Ten  persons  are  employed  in  the  various  branches  of  the 
work,  and  six  varieties  of  fish  are  handled :  wakin,  ryukin,  ranchu,  oranda  shishigashira,  demekin. 
and  shukin.  The  principal  goldfish  establishment  at  Koriyama  has  50  large  ponds  and  numerous 
small  ones  with  an  area  of  perhaps  150,000  square  feet,  including  extensive  ponds  reserved  for  tilt- 
growing  of  food  for  the  young  and  old  fish.  Five  varieties  are  here  regularly  grown,  and  the 
annual  crop  sometimes  exceeds  600,000  fish. 

The  accompanying  illustration  shows  a  part  of  a  typical  Tokyo  goldfish  farm.  In  the  fore- 
ground are  shallow  breeding  ponds  in  which  the  water  has  been  drawn  down.  The  several  flat  dishes 
suspended  from  bamboo  poles  stuck  in  the  muddy  bottom  are  the  receptacles  on  which  food  for  the 
goldfish  is  placed.  Further  back  is  a  cluster  of  small,  very  shallow  cement  ponds  or  basins  among 
which  a  man  is  standing;  over  some  of  these  basins  the  wire-gauze  covering  has  been  tilted  back.  At  the 
extreme  left  an  employe  is  drawing  water  from  a  shallow  well  with  a  sweep.  In  the  small  house  on 
the  right  fish  food  is  prepared.  The  larger  house  on  the  left  is  the  home  of  the  proprietor  and  his 
family,  and  is  the  business  headquarters  of  the  plant. 

46 


VIEW  IN  A  TOKYO  GOLDFISH  ESTABLISHMENT 

47 


General  Principles  of  Breeding, 

The  remarkable  results  that  have  been  achieved  by  the  Japanese  in  producing  variations  in  the 
form  and  color  of  goldfish  have  depended  on  no  secret  or  mysterious  processes  and  no  mechanical 
devices  or  appliances,  but  have  been  due  to  an  intelligent  application  of  natural  laws.  Professor 
Mitsukuri,  of  the  Imperial  University  of  Tokyo,  has  noted  that  the  Japanese  goldfish  culturists  well 
understand  the  principle  of  "breeding  to  a  point,"  and  although  they  are  usually  without  much 
education  and  have  acquired  all  of  their  knowledge  from  practical  experience,  they  often  discuss 
evolutionary  matters  in  a  way  that  suggests  acquaintance  with  the  Darwinian  theory  of  the  origin 
of  species.  Some  of  the  ideas  current  in  America  as  to  the  ways  in  which  the  varieties  have  been 
produced  are  quite  absurd  and  cause  much  amusement  to  the  Japanese. 

In  brief,  the  Japanese  breeders  have  attained  their  success  by  adhering  as  strictly  as  possible  to 
nature  in  feeding,  rearing,  and  otherwise  caring  for  their  fish ;  by  eliminating  the  unfit ;  and  by 
providing  a  superior  brood  stock  and  definitely  selecting  the  fish  that  are  to  mate  each  year.  The 
resulting  rich  harvest,  with  its  beauty  of  form  and  color,  is  a  necessary  consequence,  and  bears  testi- 
mony to  the  combination  of  patience,  skill,  and  intelligence  in  the  character  of  the  Japanese  that 
enables  them  to  accomplish  so  much  in  all  their  pursuits. 

The  only  exception  to  the  employment  of  purely  natural  methods  in  Japanese  goldfish  culture 
is  that  at  Koriyama  the  practice  has  existed  from  very  early  times  of  artificially  making  designs  on 
the  backs  of  the  fish.  This  is  done  by  the  use  of  dilute  hydrochloric  or  muriatic  acid,  and  the  process 
consists  in  a  decolorization  which  leaves  the  treated  parts  white.  This  destruction  of  the  pigment 
in  the  skin  is  possible  only  over  the  scaly  body,  and  cannot  be  safely  brought  about  on  the  unsealed 
parts — the  heads  and  fins.  The  operation  is  best  performed  in  August  or  September,  and  the  fish 


should  be  in  the  highest  physical  condition  by  having  had  an  abundance  of  fattening  food  for  some 
time  before.  By  the  use  of  a  brush,  glass  rod,  or  stick,  the  acid  is  judiciously  applied  after  the 
skin  has  been  wiped  dry.  In  this  way  flowers,  figures,  letters,  etc.,  aie  produced;  but  the  results  are 
not  very  pleasing  to  the  esthetic  taste,  and  the  practice  is  quite  uncommon  and  is  not  to  be  commended. 
The  methods  herein  described  are  such  as  are  followed  at  Koriyama  and  Tokyo  and  by  the 
principal  culturists  at  those  places ;  and  the  information  given  is  based  on  the  personal  observations 
of  the  writer.  Use  has  been  made  of  additional  material  contained  in  several  excellent  papers  by 
Japanese  scholars. 

The  Tonds  and  the  Water  Supply 

In  growing  goldfish  for  profit  it  is  necessary  to  have  ample  pond  area.  The  extent  of  the 
business  will  of  course  depend  largely  on  the  amount  of  water  in  which  the  fish  may  be  grown ; 
and  the  season's  success  may  often  be  affected  by  the  number  of  available  ponds  into  which  young 
and  adult  fish  may,  in  emergencies,  be  transferred. 

There  are  two  general  classes  of  goldfish  ponds,  large  or  mud  ponds  and  small  or  cement 
ponds ;  to  these,  in  the  Koriyama  district,  are  to  be  added  special  food  ponds. 

The  mud  ponds  are  so  called  because  they  have  a  soft  mud  bottom,  and  are  usually  roily  in 
consequence.  They  are  rectangular,  and  their  size  depends  on  local  conditions,  individual  tastes, 
number  of  fish  to  be  held,  and  particular  variety  of  fish  to  be  cultivated.  In  Koriyama,  one  extensive 
breeder  has  ponds  as  large  as  50  by  100  feet,  while  other  culturists  prefer  ponds  of  smaller  and 
more  convenient  size,  say  18  by  50  to  60  feet.  The  depth  of  these  ponds  never  exceeds  3  feet  and 
often  is  only  1.5  to  2  feet.  This  shallowness  is  an  important  feature,  ensuring  efficient  oxygena- 
tion  and  lighting,  and  would  doubtless  be  carried  still  further  if  it  did  not  expose  the  fish  to  injury 

49 


from  too  strong  sun's  rays  and  sudden  atmospheric  changes.  The  sides  of  the  ponds  are  formed  of 
upright  boards  sunken  into  the  bottom ;  and  the  ponds  are  separated  by  gravelly  or  sandy  walks 
bordered  with  grass,  flowers,  or  other  vegetation.  By  means  of  a  gate  or  pipe  the  ponds  may  be 
drained  as  needed  for  cleansing  and  other  purposes. 

The  mud  ponds  are  for  brood  fish,  for  grown  fish  intended  for  sale,  and  for  fish  in  course  of 
rearing.  They  are  kept  constantly  stirred  by  the  swimming  and  feeding  movements  of  the  fish. 

In  modern  goldfish  culture  small  cement  ponds  are  quite  as  indispensable  as  the  larger  mud- 
bottom  ponds.  Their  size  depends  on  personal  preference  and  the  purposes  for  which  intended.  The 
dimensions  may  be  as  small  as  3  by  3  feet  or  as  large  as  12  by  12  feet,  with  all  intermediate  sizes, 
with  a  depth  of  6  inches.  In  Koriyama,  for  the  accommodation  of  the  large  oranda  variety,  ponds 
are  18  to  20  feet  long  and  5  feet  wide,  with  a  depth  of  8  to  10  inches.  Such  ponds  are  usually 
and  most  conveniently  arranged  in  series  of  6  to  12,  sometimes  separated  by  narrow  walks,  sometimes 
only  a  few  inches  apart.  Each  set  of  ponds,  or  basins,  as  they  should  perhaps  be  called,  is  supplied 
with  water  through  a  common  open  trough  or  flume;  and  each  basin  has  a  Watergate  in  the  middle 
of  the  side  next  the  flume.  The  outlet  pipe  occupies  the  center  of  a  rounded  depression  near  the 
opposite  end  of  the  basin;  this  concavity  is  9  to  18  inches  wide  and  2  to  4  inches  deep,  and  is  intended 
to  receive  the  fish  and  prevent  them  from  struggling  as  the  water  is  drawn  off.  These  basins  are 
usually  provided  with  covers  or  awnings  so  as  to  regulate  the  amount  of  light  and  to  afford  pro- 
tection from  enemies  and  elements. 

The  cement  basins  are  used  for  the  retention  of  brood  fish  immediately  prior  to  and  during 
spawning,  for  the  hatching  of  the  eggs,  for  the  rearing  of  the  young,  for  the  holding  of  fish  awaiting 
sale  and  shipment,  and  for  various  other  purposes. 

50 


The  water  supply  of  goldfish  establishments  is  generally  far  from  profuse,  and  often  of  a 
character  that  would  seem  to  be  questionable;  nevertheless  it  serves  the  purpose  admirably.  The 
ponds  are  flooded  with  water  from  various  sources,  but  only  rarely  are  they  supplied  by  gravity 
from  a  running  stream.  Shallow  wells  provided  with  pumps  or  buckets  may  be  found  at  nearly 
every  station;  stream  water  when  available  is  transferred  by  pump,  treadmill,  or  buckets;  ditches 
are  often  drained  into  the  ponds;  and  rainwater  is  generally  utilized.  The  ponds  being  quite  sluggish 
and  subject  to  infrequent  change  or  renewal,  algae  often  grow  rankly  and  give  the  water  a  distinct 
greenish  color.  There  are  no  rooted  and  surface  flowering  plants  in  the  ponds,  such  being  rigidly 
excluded.  In  some  instances  the  ponds  receive  the  discharge  of  gutters  of  the  town  or  city,  such 
water  being  considered  desirable  because  it  contains  a  large  amount  of  organic  matter  whose  decom- 
position favors  the  ultimate  growth  of  fish  food. 

In  order  to  guard  against  the  development  of  poisonous  gases  and  other  deleterious  substances, 
and  also  to  eliminate  enemies  that  may  have  entered,  the  mud  ponds  are  drawn  down  at  least 
twice  a  year  (spring  and  late  autumn),  extraneous  substances  raked  out,  and  the  bottom  exposed 
to  the  air  for  4  to  6  days.  More  frequent  draining  is  desirable  if  practicable. 


51 


IV— THE  PARENT  FISH,  THE  EGG -LAYING,  AND  THE  HATCHING 


The  Care,  Selection,  and  Mating  of  the  Brood  Fish 

ISH  from  which  it  is  expected  to  get  eggs  at  the  next  spawning  time  are  given  special 
attention  in  autumn,  and  are  then  provided  with  an  abundance  of  suitable  food  so 
that  they  may  begin  the  winter  in  a  robust  state  and  emerge  therefrom  in  the  best 
possible  condition.  Another  reason  for  promoting  the  physical  well  being  of  the  fish 
particularly  in  the  autumn  preceding  spawning  is  that  they  may  then  develop  their 
colors  and  shape  most  fully  and  give  the  culturist  the  best  information  as  to  the 
possibilities  of  his  brood  stock. 

The  spawning  season  extends  from  the  latter  part  of  March  to  the  middle  of  June,  but  April 
and  May  are  the  chief  months.  The  time  when  particular  fish  lay  their  eggs  may  be  controlled 
to  a  certain  extent.  Fish  that  are  given  sufficient  food  and  retained  in  stagnant  water  will  have 
their  spawning  retarded  or  altogether  inhibited ;  while  fish  that  are  exhibiting  the  symptoms  of 
approaching  spawning  may  be  made  to  deposit  their  eggs  within  one  or  two  days  if  they  are  given 


53 


plenty  of  food  and  have  the  water  in  their  pond  frequently  changed  or  if  they  are  transferred 
to  another  pond. 

At  the  approach  of  the  spawning  time  the  fishes'  colors  become  brighter,  the  abdomen  in  the 
female  begins  to  enlarge  owing  to  the  growth  of  the  ovaries,  and  there  appear  on  the  head  of  the 
males  peculiar  excrescences  ("pearl  organs")  that  may  be  too  small  easily  to  be  seen  but  are 
readily  detected  by  touch.  The  fish  crowd  together  in  the  ponds  and  make  much  commotion  as 
they  splash  and  jostle.  They  eventually  separate  into  pairs,  or  rather  each  male  attaches  himself 
to  a  female,  pursuing  her,  swimming  around  her,  and  rubbing  her  abdomen  with  his  roughened 
snout  and  opercles.  Sometimes  two  or  three  males  will  follow  a  female.  As  the  time  for  spawning 
comes  nearer,  the  attention  of  the  males  becomes  more  assiduous  and  the  ripening  and  loosening 
of  the  eggs  are  doubtless  facilitated  by  their  actions. 

Goldfish  begin  to  breed  when  two  years  old  and  continue  to  spawn  for  six  or  seven  years  or 
even  longer,  but  the  best  brood  fish  are  those  that  are  three,  four  or  five  years  old.  The  fish  three 
and  four  years  old  are  the  most  satisfactory.  After  the  fifth  year  the  spawning  capacity  rapidly 
diminishes,  and  fish  so  old,  having  served .  for  breeding  purposes,  are  usually  sold  and  make  useful 
aquarium  objects  for  many  years  thereafter.  The  normal  age  attained  by  the  more  hardy  varieties 
is  sixteen  or  seventeen  years. 

The  fish  of  suitable  age  for  breeding  purposes  are  subjected  to  careful  and  critical  examination, 
and  a  selection  is  made  of  those  whose  mating  is  most  likely  to  produce  the  qualities  most  desired 
in  the  offspring.  In  addition  to  physical  vigor,  the  general  form  of  body,  character  of  fins,  and 
pattern  of  coloration  are  duly  considered,  with  reference  to  the  special  fashions  in  vogue  in  the 
community  and  the  requirements  of  the  trade. 

54 


The  Spawning  Ponds  and  their  Preparation 

As  the  ponds  in  which  the  brood  fish  are  kept  do  not  contain  materials  suitable  for  the  recep- 
tion of  eggs,  it  is  necessary  either  to  insert  such  substances  or  to  transfer  the  fish  to  ponds  that 
have  been  prepared  for  the  purpose.  The  latter  course  is  preferable  for  various  reasons. 


REMOVING  DUST,  DIRT,  BUBBLES,  ETC.,  FROM  THE  SURFACE  OF  A  CONCRETE  SPAWNING  POND  INTO  WHICH  A  NEW  SUPPLY 

OF  WATER  HAS  JUST  BEEN  RUN 

55 


In  Tokyo  the  favorite  articles  for  spawning  bsds  are  living  water  plants,  particularly  the  milfoil 
(Myriophyllum  vcrticillatum)  and  the  hornwort  (Ceratophyllum  demcrsum),  but  in  Koriyama 
preference  appears  to  be  given  to  roots  of  the  willow  (Salix).  Several  weeks  before  egg-laying 
time  the  fine,  matted  roots  of  the  willow  are  collected  in  large  quantities,  thoroughly  washed,  then 
boiled  to  sterilize  them,  and  finally  dried. 

The  usual  procedure,  when  spawning  is  imminent,  as  shown  by  the  behavior  of  the  fish  and 
the  temperature  of  the  water,  is  to  transfer  the  fish  to  the  spawning  pond,  the  sexes  being  about 
equally  represented  and  the  number  depending  on  the  size  of  the  pond.  The  water  plants  or  the 
bundles  of  willow  roots  are  placed  in  this  pond,  and  on  these  the  eggs  are  soon  deposited. 

The  common  practice  at  Tokyo,  in  the  case  of  the  ranchu,  for  example,  is  to  hold  the  ripening 
fish  in  concrete  basins.  A  small  cultivator  might  have  only  three  pairs  of  fish  in  a  pond,  while 
an  extensive  cultivator  might  have  twenty-five  pairs.  It  is  considered  unnecessary  to  change  the 
water,  and  the  principal  attention  the  fish  require  is  to  be  amply  fed  for  about  ten  days  before 
spawning,  the  preferred  food  at  this  time  being  worms  and  mosquito  larvae.  As  the  experienced 
cultivator  can  usually  tell  when  the  eggs  will  be  laid,  the  water  in  the  spawning  pond  is  renewed 
the  previous  day,  the  milfoil  is  introduced,  and  the  brood  fish  are  removed  thereto.  For  three  or 
four  pairs  of  fish  a  pond  or  basin  with  an  area  of  ten  or  twelve  feet  is  sufficiently  large,  while  for 
twenty-five  pairs  the  pond  should  be  forty  to  forty-five  feet  in  area.  Then,  should  the  atmospheric 
conditions  be  suitable — a  rise  in  temperature  or  a  warm  rain — the  fish  will  spawn  the  next  morning. 

When  cultivated  after  the  Tokyo  method,  the  brood  fish  of  the  ryukin  variety  are  kept  in 
mud  ponds  and  are  permitted  to  spawn  in  the  same  pond  in  which  they  have  wintered.  The  ripening 
and  deposition  of  their  eggs  are  encourage!  by  giving  a  plentiful  supply  of  food,  and  the  growth 

56 


of  natural  food  within  the  pond  is  facilitated  by  the  use  of  fertilizer,  as  hereinafter  noted. 
When  the  temperature  of  the  pond  has  risen  to  60°F.,  as  usually  happens  about  the  first  of  April 
or  earlier,  the  water  is  renewed  and  the  material  for  the  spawning  beds  is  inserted.  As  many  as 
400  to  500  pairs  of  fish  three  years  old  are  allowed  to  spawn  in  one  pond,  the  proper  space  for 
each  100  pairs  being  about  400  square  feet. 

In  the  breeding  operations  at  Koriyama,  the  parent  fish  are  generally  kept  in  large  mud  ponds 
and  deposit  their  spawn  there,  and  as  the  eggs  are  laid  they  are  transferred  to  concrete  ponds  for 
hatching. 

When  it  is  the  desire  to  produce  orandas  of  the  largest  size,  parent  fish  six  years  old  in  sound 
physical  condition  and  with  good  form  are  put  into  a  special  roomy  pond,  allowing  about  four 
square  feet  per  pair,  and  are  given  an  abundance  of  suitable  food ;  and  to  carry  the  cultivation 
for  size  still  further,  brood  fish  seven  years  old  are  selected  and  are  allowed  ten  to  twelve  square 
feet  per  pair. 

The  Eggs,  their  Care  and  Development 

As  is  the  case  with  the  vast  majority  of  fishes,  the  eggs  of  the  goldfish  are  fertilized  after 
deposition.  While  artificial  propagation  is  doubtless  feasible,  it  is  entirely  unnecessary  and  is  not 
practiced  in  Japan  or  elsewhere  because  under  natural  conditions  fertilization  is  ordinarily  most 
perfect. 

When  the  eggs  have  become  mature  within  the  ovaries  and  the  female  is  fully  ripe,  the  extrusion 
of  the  eggs  is  accomplished  by  a  series  of  spasmodic  muscular  efforts.  At  the  same  time  or  imme- 
diately thereafter,  the  attendant  male  emits  the  milt  that  contains  the  fertilizing  cells,  which  are 
disseminated  throughout  the  adjacent  water  and  come  in  contact  with  the  eggs. 

57 


Goldfish  eggs  are  slightly  heavier  than  water  and  are  not  adherent  to  one  another,  so  that 
when  they  are  expelled  they  settle  on  the  roots  or  water  plants  that  constitute  the  spawning  bed 
and  cover  them  more  or  less  evenly.  Their  surface  being  sticky,  the  eggs  have  a  tendency  to  remain 
where  they  first  settle,  and  as  the  mucilaginous  material  quickly  hardens  in  water  the  eggs  are 
securely  held  in  a  position  most  favorable  for  thorough  aeration  while  hatching. 


GOLDFISH  SPAWNING  ON  WILLOW  ROOTS  IN  A  MUD  POND 


58 


Unlike  many  other  fishes,  the  goldfish  exercise  no  care  or  solicitude  for  their  eggs  when  they 
have  once  been  laid,  but  on  the  contrary  promptly  devour  them  if  permitted  to  do  so.  It  is  therefore 
necessary  to  remove  either  the  parents  or  the  eggs  to  another  pond.  When  the  eggs  are  to  be 
transferred  from  one  pond  to  another  for  hatching,  the  bundles  of  roots  or  the  plants  containing 
them  are  gently  washed  in  clear  running  water,  and  carefully  placed  in  the  hatching  ponds.  In 
order  to  prevent  the  eggs  from  becoming  crowded  or  smothered,  the  bundles  of  roots  are  some- 
times tied  on  a  rope  at  regular  intervals  and  arranged  in  rows.  Having  regard  for  the  accommoda- 
tion of  the  fry  during  the  days  immediately  after  hatching,  the  proper  number  of  eggs  for  a 
cement  pond  with  an  area  of  100  square  feet  is  50,000  to  60,000. 

The  different  varieties  of  goldfish  produce  about  the  same  number  of  eggs  when  fish  of  the 
same  size  and  age  are  considered.  At  Koriyama,  the  oranda  will  lay  approximately  2,000  eggs 
when  two  years  old,  25,000  eggs  when  three  years  old,  and  70,000  eggs  when  four  and  five  years 
old.  The  eggs  in  different  parts  of  the  ovaries  do  not  ripen  at  the  same  time,  and  the  spawning 
period  for  a  given  fish  is  thus  quite  prolonged.  Individual  fish  deposit  from  three  to  ten  lots  of 
eggs  at  intervals  of  eight  to  ten  days.  The  first  batch  of  eggs  is  the  best,  the  last  is  the  worst  and 
is  likely  to  produce  weak  fry. 

The  goldfish  egg  when  first  deposited  has  a  slightly  wrinkled  and  loose  outer  covering,  but  owing 
to  the  fact  that  it  immediately  begins  to  absorb  water  it  quickly  assumes  a  perfectly  spherical  shape 
and  the  limiting  membrane  becomes  smooth  and  tense.  The  average  diameter  of  the  fertilized  egg 
is  .0625  inch,  and  the  number  in  a  pint  is  about  137,500.  A  viable  egg  is  transparent  and  colorless  or 
slightly  yellowish,  but  an  unfertilized  egg  soon  becomes  milky  and  opaque. 

The  only  attention  the  eggs  require  is  to  see  that  they  are  covered  with  water,  are  not  becoming 

59 


fungoused,  and  are  protected  from  unfavorable  weather  conditions.  Should  hail  threaten,  a  strong 
wind  blow,  or  the  air  temperature  fall  suddenly,  the  ponds  must  be  quickly  covered  with  matting  or 
screens. 

As  a  general  thing,  the  hatching  ponds  receive  and  require  no  fresh  water  while  incubation 
is  in  progress.  It  is  sometimes  desirable,  however,  to  effect  a  change  of  water,  particularly  if  the 
temperature  becomes  very  high. 

The  hatching  period  is  comparatively  short,  and  normally  occupies  eight  to  nine  days  at  a  water 
temperature  of  60  to  65°F.  A  rising  temperature  may  reduce  the  hatching  time  as  much  as  one- 
half,  but  a  very  rapid  development  of  the  eggs  is  unfavorable.  On  the  other  hand  a  fall  in  the  water 
temperature  may  prolong  the  hatching  one-third  to  one-half,  but  a  greatly  retarded  incubation  is 
likewise  unfavorable,  especially  in  that  the  young  are  not  of  uniform  size.  A  peculiarity  of  the  gold- 
fish egg  is  that  the  embryo  covers  nearly  the  entire  circumference  of  the  vitellus,  and  the  yolksac  is 
comparatively  small  and  very  granular. 


V-FOOD,  GROWTH,  AND  CARE  OF  THE  FISH 


Living  Crustacean  Food  and  its  Cultivation 

ROPER  food  in  proper  quantity  at  the  proper  time  is  of  the  most  vital  import- 
ance in  successful  goldfish  culture.  Not  only  do  the  life  and  growth  of  the 
young  depend  absolutely  on  it,  but  also  the  form,  color,  spawning  capacity,  and 
market  value  of  the  resulting  adult  fish.  The  natural  and  therefore  the  best 
food  for  goldfish  at  all  stages  of  growth  is  minute  crustaceans  belonging  to  the 
sub-class  Entomostraca,  particularly  those  of  the  orders  Copepoda,  Ostracoda,  and 

Cladocera,  which  are  often  popularly  included  in  the  general  term  of  "water  fleas,"  and  are  referred 
to  by  the  Japanese  as  "mijinko."  Among  the  best  known  and  most  important  of  these  are  Cyclops, 
Cyprls,  Daphnia,  and  Polyphemus. 

These  little  creatures  occur  naturally  in  nearly  all  fresh  waters,  and  abound  in  the  ponds  in 
which  goldfish  are  reared ;  but  under  ordinary  conditions  the  supply  would  soon  be  exhausted 
even  though  they  multiply  quickly.  Therefore,  one  of  the  chief  duties  of  the  Japanese  goldfish 


61 


breeder  is  to  devise  ways  and  means  to  insure  an  abundance  of  such  food.  To  this  end  special 
waters  must  be  available  for  the  collection  and  retention  of  such  creatures,  and  special  efforts  must 
be  made  to  encourage  their  growth  in  the  goldfish  ponds. 

The  most  striking  feature  of  goldfish  culture  as  practiced  by  the  Koriyama  school  is  the  great 
amount  of  effort  and  time  devoted  to  the  collection  and  artificial  production  of  crustacean  food. 
This  subject  of  couise  receives  attention  at  Tokyo  and  elsewhere,  but  is  less  characteristic  and  in 
general  much  less  elaborately  worked  out  than  at  Koriyama. 

The  simplest  method  of  providing  these  small  crustaceans  is  to  collect  them  in  open  waters — 
reservoirs,  ditches,  ponds,  streams — if  the  culturist  has  convenient  access  to  such.  The  usual  col- 
lecting grounds  are  the  reservoirs  for  the  irrigation  of  rice  fields,  in  which  the  conditions  are 
very  favorable  for  the  existence  of  these  creatures.  Many  are  produced  also  in  the  mud  ponds. 

The  enterprising  breeders,  however,  do  not  depend  on  the  natural  growth  of  "mijinko,"  but 
resort  to  artificial  measures  for  maintaining  a  constant  supply.  This  work  is  scarcely  less  note- 
worthy than  the  cultivation  of  the  goldfish  themselves,  and  is  perhaps  the  most  remarkable  feature 
of  this  industry,  for  the  Japanese  have  gone  far  ahead  of  other  people  in  this  important  branch, 
As  Professor  Mitsukuri  has  said,  "the  Japanese  goldfish  breeders  have  the  knack  of  producing 
these  water  fleas  in  any  quantity  they  need  at  any  time  they  like." 

The  essential  point  in  the  cultivation  of  "mijinko"  is  the  fertilization  of  the  pond,  so  that 
the  growth  of  the  minute  animals  and  plants  that  serve  as  the  immediate  or  the  ultimate  food  of 
the  crustaceans  may  be  greatly  stimulated.  Given  an  abundant  food  supply,  the  little  crustaceans 
will  multiply  with  astonishing  rapidity  and  soon  acquire  a  bulk  which  in  the  aggregate  is  very 
considerable.  There  are  several  ways  of  fertilizing  the  mud  ponds.  Reference  has  already  been 

62 


made  to  the  use  at  times  of  water  from  the  gutters  and  ditches  of  the  towns  and  villages;  this 
water,  rich  in  organic  matter,  both  living  and  dead,  is  run  directly  into  the  rearing  ponds.  Another 
practice  is  to  place  in  the  ponds  loose  rolls  of  straw  matting  permeated  with  rice  bran  or  the 
lees  of  soy :  the  fermentation  that  ensues  finally  promotes  the  growth  of  the  desired  Crustacea. 
Another  method  is  to  put  soy  lees  in  a  loose  straw  bag  that  is  placed  on  the  bottom  of  the  pond, 
with  the  same  results  as  before,  the  crop  of  water  fleas  being  ready  for  harvesting  by  the  young 
goldfish  at  the  expiration  of  4  or  5  weeks.  Still  another  way  of  inducing  quickly  an  abundant 
growth  of  crustaceans  is  to  inoculate  the  pond  therewith ;  a  pint  of  these  creatures  placed  in  a 
suitable  pond  of  an  acre  or  1,000  to  1,200  square  feet  will  multiply  so  rapidly  that  after  3  to  5 
days  many  thousand  young  goldfish  may  be  subsisted. 

For  the  more  effective  and  extensive  production  of  "mijinko,"  however,  it  is  customary  to 
proceed  somewhat  differently.  Supposing  a  pond  to  have  a  area  of  1,800  square  feet,  there  will 
be  placed  in  it  rice  bran,  soy  lees,  or  fresh  horse  manure  to  the  amount  of  4  or  5  bushels,  the  pond 
having  previously  been  drained ;  for  a  recently  constructed  pond  the  quantity  of  fertilizer  must  be 
increased  and  a  combination  of  soy  lees  and  manure  may  be  used.  After  the  bottom  of  the  pond, 
with  the  fertilizing  substance  spread  over  it,  is  exposed  to  the  sun  for  6  to  8  days,  the  water  is 
turned  on  and  the  pond  is  flooded.  In  a  few  clays  the  color  of  the  water  becomes  decidedly 
green  from  the  presence  of  unicellular  algae  in  great  abundance,  and  in  2  to  4  weeks  the  water 
fleas  will  exist  in  such  numbers  that  they  will  support  many  thousand  young  goldfish  with  con- 
stantly increasing  appetities.  It  may  be  necessary,  however,  to  continue  to  apply  fertilizer  to  the 
pond  at  short  intervals. 

The  collecting  of  entomostraca   from  reservoirs  and  lakes   for  the  newly-hatched   fish    in    the 

63 


cement  ponds  is  an  important  part  of  the  work  and  occupies  the  time  of  many  people.  The  peculiar 
bag-net  required  for  this  purpose  is  25  to  30  feet  long  and  2.5  feet  wide  throughout  its 
length,  the  bottom  being  cut  off  square  and  gathered  with  a  string;  it  is  made  of  fine  cotton 
or  calico  that  has  been  treated  with  extract  of  oak  bark  or  other  astringent  solution.  The  bambo 
pole  to  which  the  bag  is  attached  is  of  about  the  same  length.  One  man,  standing  on  the  bank, 


COLLECTING  MINUTE  CRUSTACEANS  AS  FOOD  FOR  GOLDFISH 


operates  the  net,  drawing  it  slowly  through  the  water  and  gradually  accumulating  a  mass  of  water 
fleas  and  in  addition  insects,  plants  and  various  other  kinds  of  material  which  must  he  separated 
from  the  crustaceans. 

As  many  species  of  entomostraca  are  entirely  too  large  for  the  mouth  and  stomach  of  the 
goldfish  fry,  it  is  necessary  to  sort  them  according  to  size,  and  this  procedure  is  required  during 
all  the  stages  of  the  fry  period.  The  separation  of  the  crustaceans  into  sizes  adapted  for  the 
different  sizes  of  the  fry  is  accomplished  by  means  of  sieves,  of  which  5  sizes  are  used,  having 
respectively  130  meshes,  100  meshes,  80  meshes,  60  meshes,  and  20  meshes  to  the  inch.  The  sieves 
are  10  to  15  inches  in  diameter,  and  have  either  wire  or  cloth  bottoms.  Besides  separating  the 
crustaceans,  they  serve  to  exclude  foreign  matter  in  the  water ;  and  the  coarsest  kind  is  used  mostly 
to  exclude  injurious  insects  that  may  be  in  the  plankton. 

Other  Foods  and  their  Preparation 

When  entomostracans  can  not  be  supplied  in  sufficient  quantities  and  of  proper  sizes  for  the 
young  and  mature  fishes,  it  is  necessary  to  provide  substitutes  drawn  from  the  animal  and  vegetable 
kingdoms.  In  some  special  cases,  certain  of  the  other  foods  appear  to  serve  a  most  useful  purpose 
and  are  more  or  less  regularly  employed,  but  as  a  general  thing  the  substitutes  are  of  decidedly 
inferior  value. 

Mosquito  larvae  are  acceptable  food  for  older  fish  and,  when  cut  up,  for  young  fish  as  well, 
and  they  are  often  given.  In  the  culture  of  the  ranchu  at  Tokyo  the  brood  fish  for  10  days  prior 
to  egg-laying  are  freely  fed  with  these  insects,  which  may  be  collected  in  almost  unlimited  numbers 
in  stagnant  waters  in  all  parts  of  the  country. 

65 


Small  annelid  worms  (Tubifcx,  Liinnodrilus,  and  others)  that  live  in  the  bottom  of  ditches 
and  streams,  and  often  occur  in  immense  numbers,  are  frequently  fed  to  the  larger  fish,  and  in 
Tokyo  are  particularly  used  for  the  brood  ranchu  during  the  week  immediately  preceding  spawning. 

Small  fresh-water  mollusks,  especially  gastropods  of  the  genus  Vivipants,  are  crushed  and  fed 
to  the  young  during  the  summer  following  hatching  when  there  is  a  scarcity  of  crustacean  food. 
Another  animal  food  that  is  sometimes  employed  is  the  silkworm,  which  is  cultivated  on  a  most 
extensive  scale  all  over  the  southern  part  of  the  Japanese  empire.  The  silkworms  in  the  chrysalis 
stage  are  dried,  pulverized,  and  mixed  with  some  starchy  material,  and  given  to  the  fish  in  the 
first  2  or  3  months  of  their  existence. 

As  food  for  very  young  fish  the  hard-boiled  yolks  of  hen's  eggs  are  rather  commonly  em- 
ployed ;  and  some  breeders  appear  to  prefer  this  to  any  other  substance  for  the  newly-hatched  fry 
of  certain  varieties,  as,  for  instance,  the  ranchu.  The  pulverized  yolk  is  mixed  with  a  small 
quantity  of  water,  strained  through  fine  gauze,  and  distributed  over  the  ponds  by  means  of  a 
watering  pot. 

Various  kinds  of  cereal  foods  are  used,  either  alone  or  in  combination  with  the  animal  foods 
mentioned ;  among  these  are  boiled  cracked  wheat  and  a  mush  made  of  wheat  flour  or  corn  meal. 
The'  smaller  algae,  particularly  the  unicellular  forms,  are  often  eaten  by  goldfish,  but  not  from 
choice  and  not  when  other  food  is  available.  They  grow  luxuriantly  in  the  mud  ponds,  give  the 
water  a  distinctly  greenish  color,  and  are  indispensable  in  the  cultivation  of  water  fleas.  Many  are 
necessarily  eaten  incidently,  but  they  are  not  an  efficient  food  and  when  taken  to  the  exclusion  of 
other  things  fail  to  promote  a  healthy  growth. 


66 


Care  of  the  Young  Fish 

For  two  or  three  days  after  hatching,  goldfish  remain  very  quiet  on  the  bottom  of  the  pond. 
They  take  no  food  through  the  mouth  and  require  none,  as  they  obtain  all  needed  nourishment  by 
the  absorbtion  of  the  yolksac.  With  the  disappearance  of  the  yolksac  the  fry  begin  to  swim  along  the 
edges  of  the  pond  and  to  seek  food.  The  earliest  swimming  efforts  are  feeble  and  clumsy,  consisting 
of  short  spurts  without  any  attempt  at  continuous  movement.  Incubation  being  completed,  the 
materials  that  served  as  spawning  beds  are  removed  and  the  tiny  fish  are  either  transferred  immedi- 
ately to  a  clean  pond  or  are  retained  for  a  time  in  the  same  pond,  the  practice  varying  somewhat 
with  the  locality  and  the  variety. 

Cardinal  principles  in  caring  for  the  young  fish  so  that  their  growth  may  be  favored  and  their 
colors  developed  at  the  proper  time  are  to  give  them  ample  food  adapted  to  their  needs,  to  keep 
them  warm  and  expose  them  to  the  sun's  rays,  and  to  renew  the  water  in  which  they  are  held 
without  subjecting  them  to  sudden  changes  of  temperature.  Considerable  experience  is  required  in 
order  to  make  the  young  take  on  their  brightest  colors  at  the  earliest  date.  A  novice  may  be 
surprised  and  chagrined  to  find  that  a  given  lot  of  fish  will  not  exhibit  any  red  color,  while  a 
part  of  the  same  lot  in  the  hands  of  an  experienced  breeder  will  have  completely  changed. 

At  Koriyama,  after  the  removal  of  the  willow  roots  the  ponds  are  drawn  down  and  the  fry 
are  transferred  to  cement  rearing  ponds,  in  which  the  water  has  just  been  renewed.  During  the 
next  five  days  there  is  no  change  of  water;  then  fresh  water  is  supplied,  and  thereafter  there  is 
a  renewal  about  once  a  week  as  long  as  the  fry  remain  in  the  cement  ponds,  which  is  usually 
for  a  period  of  30  .days  after  hatching.  The  smallest  "mijinko"  that  can  possiblv  be  obtained  by 

67 


sifting  are  given  to  the  fry  during  the  first  10  days  or  2  weeks  of  their  swimming  life;  then 
larger  ones,  adapted  for  the  increasing  size  of  the  fish,  are  provided.  If  for  any  reason  the 
living  natural  food  can  not  be  given,  the  cooked  yolk  of  hen's  eggs  may  be  furnished  as  a  substitute. 


FEEDING  ENTOMOSTIACA  TO  YOUNG  GOLDFISH  IN  CONCRETE  PONDS 

Thirty  days  after  issuing  from  the  egg,  the  fry,  having  then  reached  the  size  of  a  rice  grain, 
are  transferred  to  a  mud  pond  teeming  with  living  food  and  containing  no  other  goldfish  and 
no  destructive  animals.  The  abundance  of  these  crustaceans  sometimes  is  extraordinary;  the  author 

68 


has  frequently  observed  rearing  ponds  in  which  the  water  was  actually  thick  with  copepods  and 
other  forms,  so  that  the  fry  had  only  to  open  their  mouths  to  obtain  all  necessary  food.  The  pond 
is  stocked  with  fry  at  the  rate  of  40  to  50  for  the  oranda  and  wakin  or  20  to  25  for  the  ranchu 
to  each  square  foo*  of  surface.  Should  the  supply  of  "mijinko"  be  inadequate  for  the  rapidly 
growing  fish,  one  or  more  of  the  various  other  foods  mentioned  must  be  provided.  These  are  not 
scattered  broadcast  over  and  through  the  pond  but  are  placed  on  shallow  earthenware  plates  or 
trays,  about  9  inches  in  diameter  and  provided  with  a  rim,  that  are  suspended  by  3  cords  from 
bamboo  poles  stuck  in  the  bottom  of  the  pond.  The  trays  are  arranged  about  the  margin  of  the 
pond  at  depths  corresponding  with  the  movements  of  the  fry.  The  very  young  fish  can  not  with- 
stand much  pressure,  and  remain  near  the  surface,  so  that  the  food  is  submerged  only  1  or  2  inches ; 
but  as  they  grow  they  are  able  to  go  deeper  and  by  winter  take  their  food  from  trays  10  to 
12  inches  below  the  surface.  The  great  advantage  of  this  method  of  administering  food  is  that 
the  unconsumed  portion  may  be  withdrawn  and  is  not  left  to  decompose,  pollute  the  water,  and 
perhaps  injure'  the  fish  if  eaten. 

The  foregoing  description  applies  to  the  ordinary  operations  at  a  Koriyama  goldfish  farm. 
When  the  rearing  is  conducted  in  concrete  ponds,  as  is  sometimes  the  case  with  the  ranchu,  a  daily 
change  of  water  is  necessary,  and  it  is  customary  to  use  as  the  principal  food  the  chopped  larvae 
of  mosquitoes  (Culex).  Given  a  concrete  pond  with  a  surface  area  of  100  square  feet,  there  may 
be  reared  in  it  100  ranchu  under  one  year  old,  30  under  two  years,  10  to  12  under  three  years. 
If,  however,  the  number  of  fry  is  reduced  one-fourth  or  one-third,  the  results  are  much  better, 
and  the  fish  may  attain  in  one  year  a  size  that  would  otherwise  require  two  years  or  more. 

The  fry  of  the  oranda  variety  hatched  in  a    concrete  pond  of  100  square  feet  need  frequent 

69 


change  of  water  as  long  as  they  are  held  in  their  limited  quarters,  which  is  for  about  40  days. 
They  are  then  put  in  a  mucl  pond  where  they  are  given  ample  room  (8  to  10  fish  to  the 
square  foot),  which  is  increased  by  frequent  sortings.  The  great  bulk  of  the  stock  is  disposed 
of  in  the  following  spring.  Fish  intended  to  be  reared  to  a  very  large  size  for  the  purpose  of 
providing  progeny  of  exceptional  development  of  body  and  tail  are  fed  freely  on  mollusks,  silk- 
worms, and  starch ;  are  given  much  room  during  their  subsequent  growing  period ;  and  are 
rigidly  selected  for  their  form  and  color.  In  their  sixth  year  the  space  allowed  them  is  5  to  6 
square  feet  per  fish,  and  in  the  seventh  year,  after  a  further  selection  of  breeders,  the  space 
may  be  15  to  20  square  feet  per  fish. 

In  the  rearing  of  the  ranchu  after  the  Tokyo  method,  the  first  food  administered  to  the  fry 
is  boiled  yolk  of  egg,  mixed  with  water  and  sprinkled  over  the  pond.  This  food  is  given  every 
morning  for  7  days,  the  amount  being  determined  by  the  appearance  of  the  fry's  abdomen,  through 
the  transparent  wall  of  which  the  yellow  food  may  be  seen.  Then  for  15  days  "mijinko"  is 
provided,  a  sieve  being  used  to  exclude  forms  that  are  too  large  and  noxious  insects.  Subsequently 
chopped  annelid  worms  and  mosquito  larvae  are  given.  During  their  active  growth,  the  young  are 
frequently  sorted  with  reference  to  size  or  quality  and  put  in  other  ponds,  the  number  is  gradually 
reduced  by  the  elimination  of  the  undesirable  kinds,  and  greater  space  is  thus  provided  for  the 
others,  so  that  by  autumn  the  ratio  of  fish  to  pond  area  should  be  not  more  than  2  to  each 
square  foot.  To  protect  these  delicate  creatures  from  the  cold,  a  winter  pond  or  hibernacle  is  pro- 
vided in  cases  where  the  fish  are  not  placed  in  a  mud  pond.  The  hibernacle  is  made  of  concrete, 
has  a  depth  of  7  to  10  inches,  is  provided  with  a  close-fitting  lid,  and  has  a  peaked  roof  which  on 
the  north  side  extends  to  the  edge  of  the  pond.  On  warm  days  in  winter  the  lid  is  lifted  so  that 

70 


the  sun's  rays  will  enter  the  pond.  If  the  water  becomes  foul,  a  gauze-covered  basket  is  put  in 
the  concave  area  at  one  end  of  the  pond  and  the  water  is  withdrawn  with  a  rubber  syphon  without 
any  distuibance  of  the  young,  fresh  water  being  then  supplied. 


DRAWING  DOWN  A  CONCRETE  REARING  POND 

The  rytikin  and  wakin,  being  hardier  than  the  ranchu,  may  be  reared  in  mud  ponds,  to 
which  the  young  are  transferred  3  or  4  days  after  they  begin  to  feed.  For  the  successful  culti- 
vation of  the  ryukin,  ample  pond  area  is  required  for  the  fish  and  for  the  cultivation  of  the  crustacean 

71 


food.  Supposing  that  200,000  young  are  on  hand,  at  least  4  ponds  with  an  aggregate  area  of 
7,000  square  feet  should  be  available  for  the  alternate  growing  of  "mijinko"  and  fish.  With  the 
exhaustion  of  the  crustacean  supply  and  the  increased  capacity  of  the  young,  mosquito  larvae  and 
other  foods  may  be  given  on  earthenware  plates  as  previously  mentioned.  The  demekin  and  the 
deme-ranchu  are  handled  in  the  same  way  as  the  ryukin. 

The  young  must  at  all  times  be  protected  from  unfavorable  meteorological  conditions.  When 
the  fish  are  in  the  shallow  concrete  ponds,  frost  and  hail  are  much  feared  by  the  breeders,  and  hard 
and  protracted  rains  also  are  dreaded.  Protection  against  these  agencies  is  secured  by  covering  the 
ponds  with  a  screen  or  canopy.  When  in  the  mud  ponds,  the  young  are  injured  by  strong  winds, 
especially  in  the  early  morning  before  sunrise,  when  the  fish  have  the  habit  of  coining  to  the 
surface  and  may  be  blown  against  the  lee  shore,  banked  up  and  killed.  Winds  therefore  cause 
much  trouble  in  spring  and  early  summer,  and  necessitate  all  the  attendants  getting  up  early  to 
provide  against  emergencies.  If  the  wind  is  very  strong  bamboo  sticks  or  poles  are  put  in  the 
ponds  to  break  the  force  of  the  waves,  and  it  may  be  necessary  to  net  out  the  fish  and  deposit  them 
on  the  protected  side  of  the  ponds.  After  an  hour  or  less  of  sunlight  the  fish  go  down  and  the 
clanger  is  over  for  the  day.  • 

Various  enemies  of  the  goldfish  must  be  guarded  against.  Among  these  are  birds,  other  fish, 
water  snakes,  turtles,  frogs,  and  insects,  the  last  being  probably  the  most  serious.  A  number  of 
kinds  of  aquatic  insects  fly  into  the  concrete  and  mud  ponds  from  outside  waters,  and  do  much 
damage  in  a  short  time,  pouncing  on  the  fry  and  devouring  them.  It  is  therefore  necessary  to 
look  over  the  ponds  with  these  enemies  in  mind  at  least  twice  daily.  Other  diseases  and  fatalities 
to  which  the  fish  are  subject  will  be  noted  later. 

72 


Sorting  and  Selecting  the  Fish 

The  goldfish  varieties  are  very  unstable,  and  exhibit  a  strong  tendency  to  revert  to  the  more 
primitive  type  and  to  show  peculiarities  of  form  and  color  that  the  culturists  strive  to  keep  in 
abeyance.  This  is  particularly  the  case  with  the  more  recently  developed  varieties,  and  it  is  not 
strange  that  many  of  their  progeny  are  not  like  their  parents,  but  resemble  the  immediate  or  remote 
ancestors  of  the  parents. 


TRANSFERRING  GOLDFISH  FRY  FROM  ONE  POND  TO  ANOTHER. 

The   pond  being  drawn   down    the  young   fish,   concentrated   in   the   circular   depression, 
are   dipped   out   with   a   bowl    and   deposited    in    tubs 

73 


From  the  earliest  practicable  date  after  hatching  up  to  the  time  when  full  maturity  is  readied, 
the  goldfish  are  subjected  to  repeated  examination  with  a  view  to  the  elimination  of  the  undesirable 
and  unfit,  so  that  the  stock  may  be  improved  and  the  expense  of  caring  for  fish  of  little  value 
obviated.  The  earlier  selections  are  made  with  reference  to  form,  while  later  both  form  and  color 
are  considered. 

The  selecting  and  sorting  of  the  young  in  concrete  ponds  are  done  by  drawing  down  the  ponds, 
dipping  the  fish  into  tubs  by  means  of  small  bowls,  then  transferring  them  to  white  earthenware  plates 
or  trays,  and  finally  taking  them  up  a  few  at  a  time  in  small  white-coated  bowls  and  examining  them 
with  regard  to  the  particular  points  under  consideration.  The  fish  being  reared  in  mud  ponds  are 
caught  with  dip  nets  or  with  bamboo  baskets  lined  with  gauze,  and  are  sometimes  sorted  on  the  spot 
and  transferred  directly  to  other  ponds ;  to  facilitate  this  a  white  earthenware  platter  is  inserted  in  the  net 
or  basket  as  a  background. 

In  the  case  of  the  ranchu,  the  Tokyo  breeders  and  others  whose  methods  are  similar  make  many 
selections  during  the  early  stages.  The  first  overhauling  conies  about  3  weeks  after  hatching  when 
the  young  are  so  small  that  a  sorting  based  on  general  characters  is  impossible,  and  only  the  size  of  the 
caudal  fin  is  considered,  the  fish  with  the  best  development  of  this  organ  being  picked  out  and  put  in  a 
separate  pond.  At  the  second  selection  made  10  days  later  special  attention  is  given  to  the  symmetry 
of  the  body.  After  another  interval  of  10  days  there  is  a  sorting  according  to  size,  and  10  days  later 
there  is  a  final  selection  with  particular  reference  to  the  shape  of  the  caudal  fin.  With  each  examination 
the  more  desirable  fish  are  given  larger  pond  space;  and  after  the  third  sorting  the  young,  having 
reached  a  length  of  1.2  to  1.25  inches,  have  a  market  value  and  those  are  sold  that  do  not  possess 
the  desired  qualities. 

74 


The  practice  of  selling  off  stock  of  little  value  after  the  third  selection  is  based  in  part  on  the 
circumstance  that  the  fish  destined  to  be  white,  and  therefore  most  undesirable  when  grown,  can 
then  l>e  distinguished  from  those  that  will  develop  a  red  or  variegated  coloration.  By  discarding 
the  unfit  and  unprofitable  the  remaining  fish  have  more  food  and  room,  and  their  growth  and 
vitality  are  thereby  promoted. 

The  sorting  of  the  oranda  shishigashira  begins  when  the  fish  have  been  out  of  the  egg  25 
days  and  are  about  a  fourth  of  an  inch  long.  In  the  first  examination,  from  two-fifths  to  two- 
thirds  of  the  fry  are  discarded  and  sold  as  soon  as  possible;  and  15  days  later  the  reserve  stock 
is  transferred  to  a  freshly-prepared  mud  pond  at  the  rate  of  8  fish  to  the  square  foot.  The  second 
sorting  comes  about  the  end  of  July,  when  the  coloration  may  be  more  accurately  gauged;  at  this 
time  white  fish  and  those  with  badly  formed  caudal  fin  are  eliminated.  Two  other  selections  are 
made  with  reference  to  the  shape  of  the  caudal,  and  by  autumn  the  number  of  fish  remaining  may 
be  only  4  or  5  to  the  square  foot.  After  being  carried  through  the  winter  in  the  mud  ponds 
without  further  sorting,  all  are  sold  in  spring  with  the  exception  of  those  retained  for  rearing  as 
brood  fish. 

The  fry  of  the  ryukin  variety  that  have  been  fed  for  two  weeks  from  earthenware  trays  in 
the  mud  ponds  are  enticed  into  scoop  nets  or  gauze-lined  baskets  by  means  of  food,  and  as  they  are 
sorted  they  are  put  into  recently  flooded  ponds.  Selection  at  this  age  is  based  on  shape  of  caudal 
fin  and  size  of  fish.  Three  to  four  weeks  later  there  is  another  sorting  according  to  size,  and  at 
the  same  time  the  fish  without  color  are  discarded.  By  the  end  of  summer  the  elimination  of  the 
inferior  specimens  has  proceeded  so  far  that  the  ponds  are  stocked  at  the  rate  of  8  to  10  fish 
]>er  square  foot,  instead  of  60  per  square  foot  at  the  outset.  Early  in  the  next  spring  all  the  fish  are 

75 


disposed  of  except  4,000  to  5,000,  and  these  are  subjected  to  still  further  examination  from  month 
to  month  until,  of  the  several  hundred  thousand  with  which  a  culturist  may  have  started,  there 
remain  for  breeding  purposes  only  1,000  fish  of  superior  grade. 


SELECT, NC;  AND  SORTING  YOUNG  GOLDFISH  FOR  REARING 
Much   of  this  tedious  work  is   performed  by  girls 


76 


Growth  and  Color  Changes 

The  rate  of  growth  of  goldfish  is,  within  certain  limits,  largely  a  matter  of  food.  The  size 
difference  between  fish  on  restricted  and  unrestricted  diet  may  amount  to  a  hundred  per  cent  in  a 
given  period.  This  is  most  important  from  a  business  standpoint,  as  the  profits  of  goldfish  culture 
consist  chiefly  in  selling  the  largest  possible  fish  at  the  earliest  possible  date.  Growth  is  influenced 
also  by  the  available  pond  space  provided.  The  same  factors  likewise  determine  when  the  color 
changes  occur,  the  brilliancy  of  the  colors,  the  extent  of  the  development  of  those  special  characters 
for  which  the  breeders  strive,  and  the  reproductive  capacity  of  the  fish. 

When  grown  in  cement  ponds  that  are  fully  stocked,  the  ranchu  attains  an  average  length 
(over  all)  of  1.8  inches  at  the  end  of  the  first  year,  2.4  inches  in  two  years,  3.6  inches  in  three 
years,  4.8  inches  in  four  years,  and  6  inches  in  five  years.  In  ponds  that  are  understocked,  the 
fish  may  become  3  inches  long  in  one  year,  with  a  corresponding  gain  in  subsequent  years.  For 
more  than  a  year  the  head  is  entirely  free  from  the  peculiar  papillated  growth  so  characteristic 
of  the  variety,  and  it  is  not  until  after  the  second  or  third  year  that  this  feature  attains  its  full 
development. 

The  average  size  of  the  oranda  at  different  periods  is  approximately  as  follows :  One  year  after 
hatching,  1.6  to  2  inches,  including  caudal  fin;  two  years,  2.4  inches;  three  years,  3.6  to  4.8  inches; 
four  years,  7  inches;  five  years,  12  inches;  six  years,  13.5  to  15  inches.  The  warty  growth  on  the 
head  begins  to  develop  about  the  second  year. 

At  the  end  of  the  calendar  year  in  which  hatched,  the  ryukin  under  favorable  conditions 
reaches  a  length  of  3  inches,  including  the  extended  caudal  fin ;  at  the  end  of  the  second  year  the 
average  length  is  5.5  inches,  third  year,  6  inches;  fourth  year,  6.5  inches,  and  fifth  year,  7  inches. 

77 


The  ryukin  requires  at  least  four  years  to  attain  full  development  of  its  most  attractive  feature — the 
caudal  fin. 

In  all  newly-hatched  fish  the  body  is  uniformly  covered  with  a  black  pigment,  which  is  an  accom- 
paniment of  infancy  and  gradually  disappears  in  the  course  of  normal  growth.  The  black  covering 
begins  to  fade  in  the  first  summer  and  ordinarily  within  a  year  gives  place  to  the  adult  coloration. 
The  fish  whose  color  changes  earliest  are  likely  to  become  white  or  white  and  red,  while  those  that 
retain  their  original  dark  pigment  longest  are  likely  to  be  uniformly  red.  Many  ryukins  become 
striped  before  the  initial  color  entirely  disappears  and  leaves  the  body  white.  Fish  that  become 
entirely  white  meet  with  no  favor  and  are  always  weeded  out  at  the  first  opportunity,  but  a  predomi- 
nance of  white  may  make  very  acceptable  fish  if  associated  with  red  fins  and  bright  red  blotches  on 
head. 

Some  interesting  facts,  bearing  on  the  question  of  heredity,  have  been  brought  to  the  notice  of 
the  goldfish  breeders.  The  observations  and  developments  have  a  rather  important  economic  aspect, 
but  have  not  been  sufficiently  correlated  to  warrant  any  general  conclusions  at  this  time  in  view  of 
the  complex,  often  unknown,  ancestry  of  particular  brood  fish. 

Because  of  the  persistency  with  which  the  Japanese  goldfish  culturists  endeavor  to  maintain  and 
improve  their  stock  by  careful  selection  of  breeders,  it  is  noteworthy  that  even  the  long-established 
varieties  have  a  most  heterogeneous  progeny,  and  in  some  instances  breed  true  to  the  extent  of  only 
about  60  per  cent.  In  the  case  of  the  oranda.  a  Koriyama  culturist  reports  that  in  his  experience  there 
may  be  expected  40  per  cent  of  sports,  consisting  of  about  30  per  cent  of  fish  having  the  form  of 
the  wild  species,  5  per  cent  wakins  with  deformed  tails,  and  5  per  cent  ranchus,  together  with  a  few 
ryukins. 

78 


It  is  noted  by  Professor  Matsubara  that  when  ryukins  with  a  two-rudder  caudal  fin  are  mated 
the  progeny  have  long  tails,  but  when  fish  with  a  one-rudder  tail  are  brought  together  the  tail  in  the 
offspring  is  short. 

Sometimes,  through  the  unfortunate  choice  of  brood  fish  that  appear  to  be  entirely  satisfactory, 
a  large  percentage  of  a  lot  of  fish  may  have  unsplit  tails,  whereas  the  culturist  had  every  reason  to 
expect  split  tails ;  this  is  serious  from  a  business  standpoint,  as  the  fish  with  unsplit  tail  bring  very 
much  less  money  than  the  others. 

Professor  Mitsukuri  cites  it  as  an  interesting  fact  that  when  the  ryukin  and  the  ranchu  are 
crossed  to  make  the  oranda  shishigashira  both  dorsal  and  caudal  fins  remain  long,  while  in  the  cross- 
ing of  the  oianda  with  the  ranchu  to  produce  the  shukin  the  dorsal  fin  is  lost  and  the  caudal  remains 
long. 

In  all  broods  of  the  varieties  lacking  the  dorsal  fin,  a  certain  percentage  of  the  young  show 
vestiges  of  that  fin — sometimes  a  miniature  fin,  sometimes  a  few  rays,  sometimes  a  number  of 
rounded  protuberances,  sometimes  a  single  spine,  all  suggesting  the  comparatively  recent  period  at 
which  the  fin  was  lost. 


Transportation  of  Goldfish 

The  commoner  varieties  of  goldfish  bear  transp)rtation  well  if  proper  precautions  are  taken,  whether 
the  vehicle  be  steamship,  express  train,  wagon  or  man,  and  whether  the  distance  be  long  or  short. 
Whenever  there  is  serious  loss  in  sending  the  hardier  varieties  from  place  to  place,  the  responsibility 
usually  rests  on  the  shipper  or  attendant.  Some  of  the  more  highly  cultivated  varieties,  however, 

79 


with  feeble  swimming  powers  and  delicate  constitution  can  be  transported  only  with  the  greatest 
difficulty,  and  even  with  extreme  care  all  or  a  large  part  of  a  consignment  usually  succumbs  to  long- 
distance travel.  Hence  some  of  the  most  interesting  varieties  have  not  yet  become  known  outside  of 
their  oriental  environment. 

Prior  to  shipment  goldfish,  whether  young  or  old,  should  be  transferred  to  tubs,  tanks,  or  small 
cement  ponds  with  pure  water  and  kept  there  without  food  for  several  days.  This  is  to  ensure  the 
throwing  off  of  all  ingested  matter  throughout  the  alimentary  canal.  If  fish  are  shipped  with  food 
in  them,  they  are  likely  to  die  either  because  they  will  pollute  the  limited  amount  of  water  in  which 
they  are  preferably  carried  or  because  the  food  will  undergo  decomposition  in  the  intestines  as  a  result 
of  lowered  metabolism. 

The  Japanese  have  learned  by  experience  to  use  only  a  limited  quantity  of  water  in  moving  gold- 
fish. It  is  a  very  important  and  suggestive  fact  that  during  either  long  or  short  shipments  goldfish 
require  only  a  very  small  amount  of  water,  and  the  best  results  are  obtained  with  the  minimum 
quantity  necessary  to  keep  the  skin  and  gills  constantly  moist.  The  writer  has  seen  more  than  a 
thousand  year-old  fish  carried  by  a  man  in  two  wooden  tubs  suspended  from  a  shoulder  bar,  and  this 
too  in  summer  and  for  half  a  mile  under  a  broiling  sun.  Notwithstanding  there  was  not  enough 
water  to  cover  the  fish,  they  were  delivered  without  any  loss  whatever.  Under  the  same  conditions 
there  would  have  been  large  mortality  had  an  attempt  been  made  to  provide  enough  water  to  isolate 
each  fish.  The  explanation  is  simple :  The  shallow  tubs  permitted  the  absorption  of  much  oxygen 
from  the  air,  and  the  absorption  was  increased  by  the  squirming  movements  of  the  fish  induced  by 
the  lack  of  water,  the  result  being  a  plentiful  supply  of  oxygen  available  for  respiration  while  their 
gills  and  bodies  were  thoroughly  moist — two  requisites  for  existence. 

80 


For  long  shipments  by  water  or  railroad,  goldfish  should  be  kept  in  shallow  tanks,  tubs,  or  trays ; 
and  there  should  lie  available  an  ample  supply  of  water  for  use  from  time  to  time  as  that  on  the  fish 
becomes  contaminated.  The  temperature  of  the  air  and  water  should  be  as  cool  as  consistent  with 
safety  to  the  fish. 


,  »* 


VI— DISEASES  AND  FATALITIES  OF  EGGS  AND  FISH 


|HE  high  degree  of  domestication  to  which  the  Japanese  goldfish  have  been  brought 
predisposes  to  various  maladies  and  fatalities  from  which  the  wild  fish  are  for  the  most 
part  free.  The  diseases  of  goldfish  are  due  to  bacteria,  to  animal  and  vegetable  para- 
sites, to  improper  food  and  feeding,  and  to  physical  causes,  and  are  such  as  affect 
fresh-water  fishes  generally.  The  nature  of  some  diseases  of  goldfish  in  Japan  is  not 
fully  understood  because  not  as  yet  investigated  in  a  scientific  way,  and  the  treatment  is  largely 
empirical.  While  this  subject  is  very  important,  it  need  not  now  be  noticed  at  great  length ;  and  it 
will  suffice  for  present  purposes  to  mention  some  of  the  more  common  maladies,  and  to  give  the 
experience  and  views  of  Japanese  goldfish  culturists. 

Under  ordinary  conditions  only  about  30  per  cent  of  the  eggs  laid  result  in  fish  that  survive  long 
enough  to  reach  a  marketable  size.  The  losses  are  40  per  cent  during  incubation  'and  30  per  cent  in 
the  fry  and  finger  I  ing  stages. 


83 


Losses  of  eggs  are  caused  by  frost,  hail,  and  other  physical  agencies  as  already  noted,  but  are 
due  chiefly  to  fungus  (Saprolcgnia).  Sometimes,  owing  to  peculiar  local  conditions,  many  eggs 
become  attacked  by  this  troublesome  growth  and  occasionally  every  egg  in  a  given  pond  may  be  affected 
and  killed  unless  proper  measures  are  taken.  The  fungus  does  not  ordinarily  begin  to  develop  on 
healthy  eggs,  but  first  attacks  unfertilized  or  dead  eggs  and  spreads  thence  to  adjoining  sound  eggs. 
If  affected  eggs  are  removed  as  soon  as  noticed,  the  spread  of  the  parasite  may  be  checked  and  no 
great  damage  done;  but  if  the  water  of  a  pond  is  thickly  charged  with  the  fungus  spores  and  there  is 
indication  of  a  general  infection,  the  healthy  eggs  should  be  removed  to  another  pond  filled  with 
pure  water,  and  the  contaminated  pond  should  be  treated  with  sodium  chloride,  copper  sulphate,  or 
other  fungicides,  then  drawn  down  and  thoroughly  cleansed. 

Fungus  attacks  likewise  young  and  adult  fish,  especially  those  with  lowered  vitality  or  with  an 
abraded  surface  on  which  the  spores  may  lodge,  and  eventually  destroys  if  unchecked.  When  the  char- 
acteristic white  fuzzy  growth  appears,  the  healthy  fish  should  be  transferred  to  another  pond,  the 
diseased  fish  should  be  segregated  in  a  tank  or  basin,  and  the  infected  pond  should  be  drawn  down 
and  the  bottom  and  sides  thoroughly  disinfected  and  dried.  If  the  disease  has  not  progressed  too  far 
the  fish  may  be  cured  by  the  local  application  of  a  solution  of  common  salt  or  peroxide  of  hydrogen,  or 
by  immersion  in  a  moderately  strong  salt  solution  for  a  few  seconds  at  a  time  or  until  the  fish  shows 
signs  of  suffering.  The  local  use  of  other  common  antiseptics  and  fungicides  (boracic  acid,  salicylic 
acid,  formalin,  carbolic  acid,  permanganate  of  potassium,  etc.)  in  proper  strength  will  naturally  be 
suggested.  Fungous  disease  is  responsible  for  a  large  percentage  of  the  mortality  among  goldfish, 
and  should  therefore  be  carefully  studied  by  breeders  and  fanciers. 

Crustacean  parasites  are  common  on  goldfish  as  on  all  other  fresh-water  fishes.     They  are  usually 

84 


known  as  fish  lice,  and  are  found  externally  on  scales  and  fins,  and  internally  in  gills  and  mouth. 
Those  most  frequently  met  with  are  copepods,  which  irritate  when  on  the  skin  and  fins,  and  may  occur 
in  the  gills  in  such  numbers  as  to  seriously  interfere  with  respiration  and  ultimately  to  cause  death. 
Such  parasites  can  usually  be  removed  with  tweezers. 

The  most  serious  diseases  of  goldfish  are  those  due  to  bacterial  and  protozoan  infections,  which 
as  a  rule  affect  large  numbers  of  fish  and  may  destroy  every  fish  in  a  pond  or  even  a  large  part  of 
the  stock  of  a  breeding  establishment.  When  visitations  come,  attention  can  more  profitably  be 
directed  to  the  removal  of  the  cause,  usually  to  be  found  in  the  water  supply,  rather  than  to  attempts 
to  cure  the  individual  fish.  The  treatment  of  such  diseases,  unless  superficial  and  localized,  is  most 
unsatisfactory;  and  as  a  general  thing  it  is  better  to  sacrifice  the  fish  at  once  so  as  to  prevent  further 
infection. 

One  of  the  leading  goldfish  culturists  of  Japan  has  given  to  the  writer  the  following  memoranda 
of  the  diseases  met  with  by  him  in  the  course  of  many  years'  experience:  (1)  "Kama."  This  is  a 
serious  epidemic  disease  affecting  fish  about  ten  days  after  hatching.  The  abdominal  wall  is  thinner 
than  normal  and  becomes  attached  to  the  dorsal  side  of  the  abdominal  cavity.  As  the  fish  can  take  no 
food,  they  soon  die.  When  the  disease  appears  in  a  pond  it  spreads  quickly,  may  attack  nearly  every 
fish,  and  may  extend  to  other  ponds.  As  soon  as  discovered,  the  pond  is  drawn  down,  drained,  and 
cleansed,  and  all  the  fish  are  sacrificed,  as  there  is  no  known  remedy.  In  the  year  immediately  pre- 
ceding the  author's  visit,  nearly  every  fish  resulting  from  the  first  and  second  spawnings  was  lost  in 
this  way,  and  only  the  third  and  subsequent  broods  escaped  the  malady.  (2)  "Naginata."  This 
affects  also  the  young  in  the  hatching  ponds,  and  while  not  so  disastrous  as  the  preceding  is  much 
feared.  It  is  characterized  by  a  swollen  abdomen,  and  is  thought  to  be  caused  by  improper  food. 

85 


The  fish  affected  sometimes  recover.  The  treatment  consists  in  draining  the  pond,  supplying  fresh 
water,  and  feeding  the  smallest  crustaceans  in  abundance.  (3)  "Kuchigusari."  Fish  in  the  hatching 
ponds  sometimes  develop  a  destructive  inflammation  of  the  snout,  which  sloughs  off;  the  caudal  and 
other  fins  also  are  destroyed.  The  cause  is  not  known,  and  no  cure  has  been  found.  (4)  "Memuki." 
The  principal  symptom  is  a  bulging  of  the  eyeballs  in  fish  a  year  or  more  old.  The  disease  occurs  mostly 
in  April,  May,  September  and  October,  and  may  be  due  to  improper  food  or  to  failure  to  guard  against 
marked  temperature  changes.  The  fish  die  if  left  alone,  but  may  be  cured  by  careful  attention  to  the 
water  and  food.  (5)  "Chirosobu"  and  "Kurosobu."  These  diseases  are  characterized  by  white  and 
black  spots,  respectively,  on  the  body,  and  may  be  of  a  fungous  or  protozoan  nature.  The  skin  loses  its 
luster  and  looks  like  Japanese  paper.  From  one  spot  the  affections  may  spread  widely.  They  are 
thought  to  be  due  to  lowered  vitality  owing  to  deficiency  of  food,  and  may  be  cured  by  proper  feeding. 
(6)  "Chinchiri."  This  name  is  given  to  a  disease  marked  by  swellings  over  which  the  scales  project 
prominently ;  the  swellings  are  soft  and  ultimately  discharge  a  yellow  fluid.  Fish  three  or  four  years 
oM  are  most  frequently  affected.  The  trouble  is  ascribed  to  a  sporozoan,  and  is  thought  to  be  incur- 
able. (7)  "Pest."  A  malady  called  the  pest  by  goldfish  breeders  sometimes  carries  off  many  year-old 
fish.  Black  spots  appear  on  body  and  fins,  and  there  is  much  wasting  of  the  muscles  of  the  back. 
The  nature  of  the  disease  is  not  known,  but  it  is  probably  either  bacterial  or  protozoan,  and  is  highly 
infectious.  On  one  occasion  a  pond  in  which  the  pest  existed  overflowed  into  a  pond  containing  healthy 
fish,  with  the  result  that  the  next  afternoon  those  ponds  were  badly  affected.  (8)  Swollen  air- 
bladder.  This  trouble,  which  is  not  common,  occurs  in  older  fish  and  particularly  in  those  living  in 
deep  ponds.  The  air-bladder  being  abnormally  distended,  the  fish  lose  control  over  their  movements 
and  equilibrium,  and  float  at  the  surface  with  the  tail  or  belly  upward. 

86 


VII -THE  STANDARDS  OF  QUALITY,  AND  THE  TRADE  IN  GOLDFISH 


Fashions,  Criteria,  and  Exhibitions 

WING  to  the  age  of  goldfish  culture  in  Japan  and  the  great  amount  of  attention  devoted 
to  goldfish  by  the  general  public  as  well  as  by  breeders  and  fanciers,  certain  stand- 
ards have  been  established,  new  fashions  have  from  time  to  time  been  started,  and 
individual  and  community  predilections  have  been  formed. 

Considering  the  three  leading  varieties,  it  may  be  noted  that  the  ranchu  is  in 
particular  favor  at  Tokyo,  the  oranda  at  Koriyama,  and  the  ryukin  at  both  places. 
The  oranda  is  most  extensively  cultivated  in  the  southern  half  of  Japan,  where  it  has  to  a  great  extent 
replaced  the  ryukin.  The  variety  was'  introduced  at  Tokyo  but  did  not  meet  with  a  cordial  reception, 
and  is  overshadowed  by  both  the  ranchu  and  the  ryukin.  The  last  is  now  grown  most  extensively  at 
Tokyo,  although  up  to  fifty  years  ago  the  chief  center  for  its  production  was  Koriyama. 

Qualities  in  the  wakin  that  are  considered  desirable  are  a  thick,  wide-spread  tail  with  three  or 
four  lobes  and  fine  rays,  and  distinct  color  pattern.     Points  of  excellence  in  the  demekin  are  symmet- 


87 


rical  and  strongly  marked  protrusion  of  the  eyeballs,  long  and  widely  spread  caudal  fin,  and  a  mottling 
of  three  or  four  colors,  with  conspicuous  vermilion  areas  or  black  spots. 

The  highest  type  of  ryukin  has,  as  its  cardinal  feature,  a  perfect  caudal  fin ;  it  may  have  either 
three  or  four  lobes,  and  is  long,  slender,  fine-rayed,  soft,  and  pendulous;  the  peduncle  is  thick.  The 
second  point  in  determining  the  quality  of  a  ryukin  is  the  shape  of  the  body  and  head;  the  body 
should  be  short  and  only  two-thirds  as  long  as  broad,  and  the  head  should  be  broad  and  with  a 
rounded  snout.  When  the  body  is  as  long  as  broad,  the  fish  ranks  as  second  best.  The  least  desirable 
examples  are  those  with  long  body  and  short  tail.  Both  back  and  belly  should  be  variegated,  and 
the  caudal  fin  should  be  red.  Fashion  requires  that  the  colors  be  not  discreet  but  well  blended. 

The  first  mark  of  quality  in  the  oranda  is  the  caudal  fin,  which  must  be  symmetrical,  long,  and 
flowing;  at  Tokyo  and  other  more  northern  places  a  four-lobed  tail  is  preferred,  but  at  Koriyama 
and  in  the  south  generally  a  three-lobed,  four-lobed,  or  bag-shaped  tail  is  acceptable  to  fanciers. 
The  shape  of  the  head  is  the  next  important  quality;  the  anterior  part  of  the  head  should  be  broad, 
and  the  protuberances,  according  to  Professor  Matsubara,  "should  be  like  a  large  well-proportioned 
flower  of  the  tree  peony,  and  should  not  be  small."  Fish  are  rarely  perfect  in  both  respects — a  well- 
shaped  head  will  be  accompanied  by  a  short  tail,  and  vice  versa. 

At  Tokyo  and  by  the  adherents  of  the  Tokyo  school  generally,  the  varieties  chiefly  cultivated 
are  the  wakin,  ryukin,  ranchu,  and  demekin;  but  the  leading  variety,  and  the  one  to  which  most 
attention  is  given  by  all  persons  interested,  is  the  ranchu.  There  is  much  friendly  rivalry  among 
breeders  and  fanciers  as  to  who  can  produce  and  possess  the  finest  specimens,  and  each  year  in  autumn 
there  is  held  in  Tokyo  a  ranchu  exhibition  at  which  the  claims  of  rival  owners  are  considered  by 
jurors  and  awards  are  made.  Professor  Matsubara  gives  the  following  account  of  this  exhibition : 

88 


"The  exhibition  lasts  two  days,  on  the  first  of  which  are  examined  the  grown-up  breeds  and 
on  the  second  the  young  in  the  first  year.  Being  developed  in  color  and  form,  the  former  naturally 
attest  the  extent  of  skill  in  the  breeders  and  their  value  can  be  known  at  a  glance.  The  latter  are 
those  hatched  only  in  the  preceding  spring  and  as  yet  little  developed  in  every  respect;  but  these, 
after  all  the  cares  lavished  upon  them  by  breeders,  are  to  appear  again  fully  grown  up  for  contest 
at  a  future  show,  and  on  that  account  are  full  of  interest  and  promise.  The  examination  of  fish 
in  an  exhibition  is  made  in  a  shallow  tub  containing  a  white  earthenware  plate  in  the  center.  Two 
ranchu  being  placed  in  the  plate  are  examined  by  connoisseurs  as  to  their  shade,  dapples,  and  the 
form  of  the  tail  and  body.  Those  perfect  in  every  respect  are  awarded  the  'first  best,'  and  a  list  of 
the  exhibits  made  in  the  order  of  their  merits  is  given  to  the  public.  Every  time  the  classification  is 
made  amid  a  stormy  debate  by  the  examiners.  No  positive  criteria  exist  to  guide  one  in  the  examina- 
tion of  the  ranchu.  Nevertheless,  those  uniformly  bright  red  are  consideied  the  best,  so  far  as  color- 
ation is  concerned.  Those  perfect  in  form,  however  uniformly  white  they  may  be,  are  counted 
tolerably  good.  The  variegated  ones  aie  generally  unpopular.  A  ranchu  having  either  a  white  body 
and  bright  red  fins  and  mouth,  or  a  bright  red  color  in  both  cheeks,  is  also  admired.  Every  one 
of  the  breeds  exhibited  has  its  own  name,  which  is  given  in  the  aforesaid  list  with  that  of  the  owner. 
Those  who  paiticipate  in  the  show  are  mostly  nobles,  wealthy  merchants,  and  others  in  comfortable 
circumstances.  On  such  occasions  the  very  best  breed  fetches  a  price  of  two  or  three  hundred  yen 
($100  or  $150),  but  not  one  in  ten  thousand  commands  such  a  high  price.  Not  a  few  goldfish 
breeders  with  fish  of  their  own  culture  now  come  from  localities  lying  far  beyond  Hakone  to  take 
part  in  a  Tokyo  exhibition.  The  reason  why  the  exhibition  is  held  in  autumn  is  that  the  goldfish  puts 
on  the  most  brilliant  colors  in  that  season." 

89 


Recently  a  similar  exhibition  has  been  started  in  Osaka,  \vheie  somewhat  different  criteria 
prevail.  Thus,  while  a  variegated  ranchu  is  not  regarded  with  favor  in  Tokyo,  a  fish  with  fine  red 
and  white  mottlings  and  a  bright  red  head  is  very  popular  in  Osaka. 

A  noteworthy  goldfish  exhibit  at  the  city  of  Sakai,  held  in  connection  with  the  great  National 
Exposition  at  Osaka,  was  visited  by  the  author.  The  choice  fish,  displayed  in  a  long  series  of  verv 
shallow  concrete  ponds,  were  numerous  as  to  individuals  and  represented  most  of  the  varieties  known 
at  that  time.  Those  most  in  evidence  and  with  particularly  fine  examples  were  the  maruko,  the 
oranda,  and  the  rynkin.  One  pair  of  marukos  four  years  old  and  weighing  probably  half  a  pound 
apiece  was  valued  at  $50;  the  fish  were  white,  with  a  few  blood  red  blotches.  Other  specimens  of 
superior  breed  had  a  nearly  uniform  golden  body  and  red  head.  A  beautiful  type  of  ryukin  was  white, 
with  the  center  of  each  scale  red.  Some  large  orandas  4  years  old,  with  a  conspicuous  rounded  mass 
of  pink  warts  on  the  top  of  the  head,  were  of  the  tokin  or  capped  form;  others  were  rich,  velvety 
black,  with  a  golden  yellow  suffusion  on  the  under  parts.  Among  the  demekins  were  some  compar- 
atively large  fish  with  small  black  blotches  irregularly  covering  the  led  and  white  body  color. 

Sales  and  Trices 

The  goldfish  industry  is  so  completely  eclipsed  by  numerous  other  branches  of  the  fisheries  that 
the  Japanese  themselves  do  not  attach  to  it  a  great  deal  of  importance  commercially,  and  exclude  it 
from  the  very  thorough  fishery  statistics  that  are  collected  and  published  under  government  auspices. 
Therefore,  it  is  not  possible  to  present  any  figures  showing  the  general  extent  of  the  business.  In 
the  Koriyama  district  at  the  time  of  the  author's  visit  the  normal  annual  goldfish  crop  was  estimated 
at  10,000,000  fish.  It  is  likely  that  the  yearly  production  and  sale  of  goldfish  in  the  whole  of 

90 


Japan  exceeds  20,000,000  and  may  reach  a  considerably  higher  number,  and  the  aggregate  value  of 
the  output  cannot  be  less  than  half  a  million  dollars. 

Goldfish  in  Japan  are  so  cheap  that  the  poorest  peasants  buy  them,  and  so  dear  that  none  but 
the  wealthy  can  afford  them.  Inferior  examples  of  the  commoner  varieties  may  be  bought  for  half 
a  cent  apiece,  which  is  probably  less  than  is  ever  paid  in  any  other  country  for  any  animated  vertebrate 


THE  SELLING  HOUSE  AT  A  KORIYAMA  GOLDFISH  ESTABLISHMENT 


91 


ornament ;  while  the  most  perfect  specimens  of  the  more  highly  cultivated  varieties  command  higher 
prices  than  are  given  anywhere  for  any  other  kinds  of  fishes. 

The  ranchu  is  the  most  valuable  variety,  the  oranda  shishigashira  closely  follows,  and  the  ryukin 
comes  next.  The  wakin  is  the  cheapest,  and  the  other  varieties  have  a  value  depending  on  their  per- 
fection and  the  local  demand.  The  value  of  goldfish  increases  so  much  with  their  age  that  it  is  very 
desirable  for  breeders  to  keep  their  best  fish  until  full  maturity  is  attained ;  and  in  the  case  of  the 
ranchu  especially  the  practice  is  to  retain  the  crop  if  possible  until  the  fifth  or  sixth  year,  when  the 
length  is  about  seven  inches,  because  such  fish  bring  the  highest  prices. 

In  order  to  convey  some  idea  of  the  actual  and  relative  values  of  the  different  varieties  of  gold- 
fish, the  following  average  wholesale  prices  per  1,000  fish  are  taken  from  the  operations  of  a  Toyko 
bleeder  a  few  years  ago:  Demekin,  1  year  old,  $10;  wakin,  3  years  old,  $22.50;  ryukin,  3  years  old. 
$100;  oranda  shishigashira,  5  years  old,  $750;  ranchu,  2  years  old,  $75;  ranchu,  5  years  old,  $2,500. 

A  large  part  of  the  output  of  many  breeding  establishments  is  bought  by  itinerant  vendors,  who 
visit  the  ponds  daily  and  take  away  the  fish  in  shallow  wooden  tubs  arranged  in  nests  and  suspended 
from  a  shoulder  bar.  The  vendors  do  a  particularly  lively  trade  on  holidays  and  festivals,  but  they 
find  a  steady  demand  at  all  times  as  they  wend  their  way  along  the  crowded  streets  and  through  the 
parks.  One  street  seller  seen  at  a  Tokyo  goldfish  farm  earned  away  at  one  time  500  goldfish  of 
different  kinds  and  sizes. 

Fish  awaiting  shipment  or  collected  for  sale  are  held  in  bamboo  baskets  and  live-cars  moored  in 
the  mud  ponds,  or  are  exposed  to  view  in  the  cement  ponds.  The  export  trade  centers  at  Yoko- 
hama, Kobe,  and  Nagasaki,  and  the  variety  figuring  most  prominently  in  that  trade  is  the  ryukin. 


92 


VIII— JAPANESE  GOLDFISH  IN  AMERICA 

• 

Historical  and  Other   'Notes, 

HE  direct  importation  of  oriental  goldfish  was  accomplished  at  a  comparatively  recent 
date.  The  earliest  lot  of  fish  to  arrive  appear  to  have  heen  those  brought  over  by 
Rear-Admiral  Ammen  about  1878.  From  this  stock  came  fish  presented  to  Prof. 
Spencer  F.  Baird,  United  States  Fish  Commissioner,  which  were  extensively  bred 
from  at  the  Fish  Lakes  in  Washington.  Later  the  importation  of  these  fish  was 
taken  up  as  a  business  enterprise  on  the  Pacific  coast,  and  attained  large  propor- 
tions. The  fish  were  first  brought  to  the  eastern  States  in  commercial  numbers  by  Mr.  William  P. 
Seal,  of  Delair,  New  Jersey,  who  for  some  years  prior  to  1894  controlled  the  output  and  supplied 
several  thousands  annually.  At  the  present  time  one  firm  in  San  Francisco  and  another  in  Seattle 
are  regularly  engaged  in  bringing  Japanese  (and  Chinese)  goldfish  to  this  country. 

The  variety  that  has  been  most  extensively  imported  is  the  ryukin,  or  fringetail.     A  few  fish  of 
the  oranda  variety  have  withstood  transportation  and  reached  the  hands  of  breeders;  and  in  Philadel- 


93 


phia  and  elsewhere  this  variety  has  been  successfully  bred.  Several  other  varieties  have  been  imported 
in  small  numbers.  Owing  to  their  delicate  nature,  the  introduction  of  some  of  the  most  attractive  and 
highly  developed  forms  has  not  yet  been  accomplished,  and  a  great  treat  is  thus  in  store  for  American 
fanciers.  Transportation  presents  serious  difficulties  which  may  never  be  overcome  in  the  case  of  some 
varieties ;  but  with  increasing  facilities  on  shipboard,  shortening  of  the  journey,  and  greater  experience 
in  handling,  it  seems  likely  that  all  of  the  Japanese  varieties  will  in  time  be  brought  to  the  hands  of 
our  breeders.  The  acquisition  of  the  most  delicate  forms  may  be  indirectly  accomplished  by  intro- 
ducing their  progenitors  and  breeding  therefrom;  the  results  of  such  crossing  would  with  proper  pre- 
cautions, as  hereinbefore  noted,  ultimately  be  the  establishment  of  the  desired  varieties. 

However,  it  seems  probable  that  the  importation  of  the  tender  varieties  that  now  succumb  to  long 
journeys  may  be  effected  by  the  transportation  of  their  eggs.  By  the  use  of  a  cool  chamber,  the 
slight  retardation  of  egg  development  may  result  in  the  introduction  of  the  most  delicate  forms,  and 
this  at  less  expense  and  trouble  than  the  transfer  of  the  fish  themselves  now  occasions. 

A  very  inviting  field  for  the  exercise  of  American  ingenuity  and  skill  is  the  opportunity  for  the 
production  of  new  goldfish  varieties  of  superior  quality  and  exceptional  interest  by  judicious  crossing, 
rearing,  selection,  and  cultivation  of  the  Japanese  forms.  As  the  result  of  the  hybridization  of  Chinese 
and  Japanese  goldfish,  American  culturists  have  obtained  a  number  of  attractive,  stable  varieties  to 
which  the  name  Japanese  has  unfortunately  been  attached ;  but  none  of  these  can  compare  with  the 
possibilities  that  are  suggested  by  the  further  crossing  of  some  of  the  Japanese  varieties  among  them- 
selves or  with  some  of  the  forms  that  deserve  to  be  called  American.  With  such  a  plastic  material  on 
which  to  work,  our  breeders  are  certainly  destined  to  bring  into  existence  some  noteworthy  varieties 
— possibly  the  most  remarkable  that  have  been  produced. 

94 


The  furthering  of  this  most  inviting  line  of  work,  and  the  extension  of  goldfish  culture  in  general, 
may  he  greatly  I  .icilitated  by  the  formation  of  goldfish  societies,  or  guilds  in  all  cities  and  towns.  Such 
organizations,  which  are  common  abroad,  particularly  in  Germany,  would  add  a  most  entertaining 
feature  to  local  life  and  give  to  professional  and  amateur  goldfish  breeders  and  fanciers  an  opportunity 
to  meet,  exchange  experiences,  and  hold  exhibitions  and  sales.  The  flourishing  Aquarium  Society  of 
Philadelphia,  with  more  than  100  active  members,  does  most  excellent  service  for  the  promotion  of 
goldfish  culture  in  America  and  affords  much  pleasure  and  instructive  pastime  for  its  members.  At  the 
meetings,  which  are  held  monthly  except  in  summer,  there  are  special  programs,  discussions,  and  exhi- 
bitions, with  award  of  prizes  for  the  best  specimens  of  goldfish  in  the  different  classes.  The  society 
has  adopted  a  set  of  standards  for  judging  the  quality  of  the  various  goldfish  breeds;  and  newly 
formed  societies  would  do  well  to  hold  this  older  organization  and  its  rules  as  models. 

Goldfish  Culture  for  Profit 

The  great  and  rapidly  increasing  interest  in  goldfish  in  America  opens  a  wide  and  profitable  field 
for  professional  goldfish  culture  in  this  country.  There  is  no  State  where  goldfish  may  not  be  grown, 
and  there  is  scarcely  a  city,  town,  or  section  where  goldfish  cultivation  can  not  be  made  remunerative. 

The  demand  for  goldfish  is  far  in  excess  of  the  supply,  and  it  is  a  common  experience  for  dealers 
to  be  unable  to  fill  orders.  This  has  been  almost  chronically  the  case  in  Washington  and  several  other 
cities  in  the  east,  and  probably  the  same  has  often  been  true  of  various  other  places  where  an  effort  is 
made  to  keep  goldfish  on  sale.  Furtheimore,  there  are  many  cities  and  towns,  to  say  nothing  of 
smaller  communities,- Where  it  is  difficult,  if  not  impossible,  to  obtain  goldfish  at  any  time. 

95 


A  number  of  years  ago  the  United  States  Bureau  of  Fisheries  distributed  Japanese  goldfish  gratis 
to  applicants,  and  hatched  and  sent  out  thousands  each  season.  This  practice  has  long  since  been  dis- 
continued but  there  is  a  steady  call  for  these  fish  from  all  parts  of  the  country.  The  fishery  service  of 
the  general  government  produces  only  small  numbers  of  godfish,  that  are  intended  solely  for  public 
ponds  and  fountains  and  for  exhibition  purposes;  and  private  applicants  are  now  referred  to  estab- 
lished dealers  and  breeders,  of  which  there  is  only  a  limited  number. 

The  best  results  in  raising  goldfish  are  attained  when  the  ponds  are  in  the  open  air;  but  American 
culturiests  have  been  quite  successful  with  indoor  culture  or  with  a  combination  of  indoor  and  open 
air  operations.  For  outside  culture  on  a  large  scale,  the  general  methods  of  the  Japanese  should  be 
followed,  with  such  modification  or  adaptation  as  local  conditions  may  require. 

Where  facilities  are  not  ample  for  large  mud  ponds  and  for  ponds  intended  primarily  for  the 
growing  of  crustacean  food  for  goldfish,  resort  may  be  had  to  small  cement  or  brick  pools  in  which 
it  is  expected  that  no  food  will  be  produced  naturally.  Such  outdoor  ponds,  being  shallow  and  not 
adapted  for  use  during  freezing  weather,  must  bs  abandoned  in  autumn,  and  the  fish  must  be  cared 
for  indoots,  in  tanks  or  hothouses.  Small  hothouses  or  greenhouses,  heated  with  an  oil  or  coal 
stove,  provided  with  glass  top  and  sides,  and  fitted  with  a-  series  of  cement  basins,  serve  excellently 
for  goldfish  culture.  They  may  be  used  in  both  summer  and  winter,  but  are  particularly  useful  in 
winter  because  the  fish  will  feed  and  grow  during  that  season  and  be  ready  for  market  earlier  than  if 
kept  out  of  doors.  The  temperature  of  such  houses  need  not  be  maintained  at  over  50°F. 

A  goldfish  breeder  who  desires  to  combine  the  useful  and  the  ornamental  may  make  his  place 
very  attractive  by  having  his  ponds  form  part  of  a  landscape  garden.  The  ponds  may  be  on  different 
levels,  connected  by  little  waterfalls,  separated  by  gravel  walks  and  greensward,  skirted  by  trees  and 

96 


flowers,  and  provided  with  pond  lilies,  lotus,  and  other  water  plants;  and  the  larger  ones  may  contain 
islets  reached  by  rustic  bridges.  Such  ornamental  arrangement  need  not  be  at  the  expense  of  any 
ponds  required  for  practical  culture  operations,  but,  on  the  contrary,  may  very  advantageously  supple- 
ment the  latter  by  supplying  large  picturesque  ponds  useful  for  wintering  purposes,  for  producing 
natural  food,  and  for  rearing  special  broods. 

A  goldfish  rearing  establishment  may  be  made  one  of  the  most  interesting  places  in  any  commu- 
nity, and  its  financial  success  may  depend  in  no  small  degree  on  the  pleasure  and  instruction  it  affords 
visitors  who  may  thereby  be  prompted  to  become  patrons. 

Suggestions  for  Maintaining  Goldfish  Aquaria  in 
the  Home,  School  and  Office 

A  properly  managed  aquarium  stocked  with  Japanese  goldfish  and  provided  with  various  inci- 
dental objects  is  one  of  the  most  attractive  and  instructive  additions  to  a  home,  school  room,  or  office, 
(ioldfish  may  be  maintained  at  much  less  expense  and  trouble  than  other  ornamental  animals  occasion, 
and  they  should  be  very  generally  installed  in  residences,  offices,  and  shops;  and  as  an  aid  to  nature 
study  there  should  be  a  goldfish  aquarium  in  every  school. 

Among  the  usual  aquarial  vessels,  globes  are  the  most  unsatisfactory  and  undesirable.  They 
afford  greatly  distorted  views  of  their  contents,  and  their  contracted  neck  is  objectionable  because  of 
the  reduced  water  surface  through  which  oxygen  may  be  absorbed.  As  a  general  thing  goldfish  kept  in 
globes  fare  badly  and  often  are  subjected  to  prolonged  torture  because  of  their  cramped,  poorly 
aerated  quarters.  Cylindrical  glass  jars  are  acceptable  for  this  purpose,  the  best  sizes  being  12  to  15 

97 


inches  in  diameter  and  the  same  height.  The  best  form  of  aquarium,  however,  is  rectangular,  with 
soapstone  or  slate  bottom,  and  with  four  glass  sides  or  with  ends  of  stone.  The  smallest  size  to  be 
recommended  is  15  inches  long,  9  or  10  inches  wide,  and  9  inches  high.  If  room  is  available,  the  most 
satisfactory  size  is  20,  24,  or  30  inches  long.  The  width  should  exceed  the  height,  and  for  the  largest 
size  mentioned  the  width  might  be  12  to  14  inches  and  the  height  10  to  12  inches.  Cylindrical  jars  and 
rectangular  aquaria  of  all  convenient  sizes  may  be  obtained  from  various  dealers  in  all  parts  of  the 
country. 

The  aquarium  may  rest  on  a  window  ledge,  on  a  pedestal,  on  a  stout  table,  or,  if  large,  on  a 
specially  constructed  support.  It  should  be  placed  where  it  will  receive  ample  light,  and  the  direct 
rays  of  the  sun  should  enter  the  water  for  a  part  of  each  day,  but  should  not  be  admitted  in  such 
amount  as  to  raise  the  temperature  of  the  water  unduly. 

The  use  of  running  water  in  a  house  aquarium  is  usually  unnecessary  and  undesirable.  By 
observing  conditions  closely,  it  is  possible  to  so  adjust  the  various  elements  that  an  aquarium  will 
become  "balanced,"  and  will  maintain  itself  indefinitely  without  change  of  water.  This  is  important 
and  may  be  attained  by  adapting  the  number  of  fish  to  the  volume  of  water,  by  securing  a  proper 
oxygenizing  of  the  water  through  surface  absorption  and  plant  action,  by  having  plants  take  up  the  car- 
bonic acid  gas  resulting  from  the  vital  activities  of  the  fish,  and  by  providing  for  the  removal  of  waste 
products  (excreta,  unconsumed  food,  decaying  vegetable  matter,  etc.)  by  the  use  of  animal  scavengers 
and  by  periodic  cleansing  on  the  part  of  the  attendant.  Under  ordinary  conditions,  fresh  water  need  be 
supplied  only  to  replace  that  lost  by  evaporation,  the  source  of  the  water  being  immaterial  provided  it 
is  clear,  of  proper  temperature,  not  lacking  in  oxygen  or  containing  injurious  gases,  and  not  strongly 
mineral. 

98 


In  stocking  an  aquarium  it  is  most  essential  that  the  number  of  fish  introduced  be  no  greater  than 
the  available  supply  of  oxygen  will  easily  maintain.  Small  fish  are  preferable  to  large  ones,  because 
they  require  less  attention  and  more  can  be  accommodated;  and  those  2  to  5  inches  long  are  the  most 
satisfactory.  For  fish  3  inches  long  or  less,  there  should  be  two-thirds  of  a  gallon  or  one  gallon  of 
water  apiece,  while  for  specimens  4  to  5  inches  long  at  least  two  gallons  of  water  apiece  should  be 
provided,  in  a  balanced  aquarium. 

To  make  an  aquarium  balanced  or  self-sustaining,  it  is  necessary  to  introduce  plants  that  are 
adapted  to  such  an  environment.  There  are  many  kinds  of  non-flowing  plants  that  combine  utility  with 
l>eauty,  and  in  almost  every  community  water  plants  suitable  for  introduction  into  aquaria  may  be 
found  in  ponds,  lakes,  and  streams.  Among  the  most  desirable  are  milfoil  (Myriophyllitin},  hornworl 
(Ceratophylhtin),  eel-grass  (Vallisneria'),  fanwort  (Caboniba],  pond  weed  (Potamogeton),  swamp 
loosestrife  (Ludungia) ,  and  water  weed  (Anacharis). 

Two  or  three  kinds  of  the  foregoing  are  sufficient  for  one  aquarium,  at  one  time,  and  the  species 
may  be  varied  at  frequent  intervals  if  desirable.  A  good  combination  is  a  floating  plant  with  a  rooted 
one.  In  a  large  aquarium  some  of  the  flowering  plants — like  the  water  hyacinth  (Piaropiis)  or  tile- 
arrowhead  (Sagittaria) — may  be  inserted  in  limited  numbers.  Various  filamentous  algae  are  likely  to 
be  introduced  incidentally  with  the  other  plants,  and  unicellular  algse  are  certain  to  occur  and  at  times 
may  multiply  to  such  an  extent  as  to  make  the  water  green  and  turbid,  thus  obscuring  the  fish.  Alga: 
frequently  coat  the  glass  sides  of  aquaria,  and  may  necessitate  the  cleaning,  particularly  of  the  front, 
in  order  to  permit  a  proper  view  of  the  interior.  A  superabundant  growth  of  plants  will  require 
removal  of  the  surplus  or  a  diminution  in  the  amount  of  light. 

Bottoms  of  house  aquaria  may  be  covered  to  the  depth  of  I1/,  to  2  inches  with  gravel  or  clean 

99 


sand,  and  the  roots  or  stems  of  the  rooted  plants  should  be  buried  in  the  sand  or  tied  to  the  pebbles 
to  keep  them  in  a  natural,  upright  position. 

Certain  animals  act  as  scavengers,  and  hence  serve  a  very  useful  purpose  in  aquaria  when  intro- 
duced in  limited  numbers.  The  best  of  these  are  tadpoles,  and  certain  kinds  of  gastropods  (snails) 
that  will  not  attack  the  larger  plants.  Some  of  the  snails  consume  the  minute  alga?,  and- serve  to  keep 
down  the  growth  of  these  on  the  glass.  In  larger  aquaria,  one  or  two  small  specimens  of  mussels 
(Unio,  Anodonta,  etc.)  may  be  allowed  to  burrow  in  the  sandy  bottom,  and  will  add  to  the  interest  in 
the  aquarium. 

A  glass  cover  will  be  found  very  desirable  for  every  aquarium.  It  should  not  fit  tightly  but 
should  be  kept  a  quarter  or  half  an  inch  above  the  frame  by  cork,  wooden,  or  rubber  buffers. 
Covers  reduce  evaporation,  exclude  dust  and  other  foreign  matter,  prevent  the  fish  from  leaping  out,  and 
protect  them  fiom  cats,  rats,  and  other  enemies..  Some  aquarists  employ  covers  made  of  wire  gauze 
or  wire  netting. 

The  water  in  a  balanced  aquarium  quickly  takes  the  temperature  of  the  surrounding  air,  and  hence 
its  temperature  varies  greatly  with  the  season  and  also  from  day  to  day.  The  goldfish  may  be  subjected 
to  a  wide  range  of  temperature  without  injury.  Like  other  cold-blooded  animals,  so  called,  the  gold- 
fish assumes  the  temperature  of  the  water  in. which  it  exists,  and  is  able  to  adapt  itself  to  100°F.  on  one 
hand  and  33°F.  on  the  other,  the  essential  conditions  being  that  a  change  of  temperature  shall  be 
gradual  and  that  oxygen  shall  be  present  in  the  water  in  sufficient  quantity.  Moderately  cool  water, 
say  of  50°  to  70°F.,  is  to  be  preferred  to  other  temperatures.  If  the  water  is  quite  cold  the  fish  are 
sluggish  and  less  attractive,  and  if  very  warm  there  is  danger  from  putrefactive  conditions  in  the 
water  and  within  the  fish's  intestines.  Cold  water  is  much  the  safer,  as  it  has  a  much  greater  power 

to  absorb  and  retain  oxygen. 

100 


The  losses  which  the  amateur  fancier  necessarily  meets  with  in  the  beginning  are  less  likely  to  be 
due  to  neglect  than  to  over  attention.  This  is  particularly  true  of  feeding.  Over-feeding  and  the  use 
of  improper  foods  are  responsible  for  most  of  the  losses  in  aquaria;  where  one  h'sh  dies  of  starva- 
tion, one  hundred  succumb  to  an  overloaded  digestive  tract. 

Inasmuch  as  the  limited  water  supply  of  a  home  aquarium  is  quickly  depleted  of  whatever  natural 
food  may  be  therein,  from  the  outset  it  becomes  necessary  to  provide  food  in  quantity  suited  to  the 
number  and  size  of  the  fish  on  hand.  In  a  properly  appointed  aquarium  a  certain  amount  of  food 
will  constantly  be  produced,  but  this  is  entirely  insufficient;  and  dependence  must  always  be  placed  on 
food  from  without. 

There  are  various  kinds  of  icady  prepared  foods  suitable  for  goldfish  in  aquaria.  Among  these 
probably  the  best  is  the  wafer  made  of  rice  flour  that  may  be  obtained  from  all  dealers  in  ornamental 
fishes.  A  certain  amount  of  animal  food  is  essential,  and  the  regular  use  of  this  will  conduce  to  the 
growth  and  health  of  the  fish.  Readily  obtainable  objects  of  this  chaiacter  are  earthworms,  that 
should  be  chopped  into  small  pieces ;  mosquito  larvae,  that  might  easily  be  bred  for  this  purpose ;  ento- 
mostraca,  collected  from  an  adjacent  pond  or  ditch  ;  ant  larvae;  and  bits  of  oyster,  mussel,  and  raw  meat. 

One  of  the  pleasantest  duties  of  the  goldfislr  fancier  is  to  feed  the  fish,  and  for  the  reason  that  it  is 
interesting  it  is  likely  to  be  overdone,  especially  if  all  the  members  of  a  household  undertake  to  give 
all  kinds  of  food  at  all  hours.  Under  the  conditions  in  a  small  aquarium,  goldfish  do  not  require  and 
should  not  receive  food  more  than  twice  a  day,  and  in  some  cases  it  may  be  better  to  give  it  only  once 
a  day.  No  definite  rules  can  be  given  governing  the  quantity  of  food  to  be  administered ;  this  depends 
on  special  conditions,  and  must  be  based  on  experience  and  observation.  It  may  be  stated,  however, 
that  the  amount  of  food  should  always  be  limited,  and  never  in  excess  of  the  immediate  needs  and  the 

101 


actual  consumption.      If   an  aquarium  is   in  such  a  place  as  to  be  affected  by  seasonal  temperature 
changes,  the  fish  should  be  given  food  less  frequently  and  in  smaller  quantity' during  the  colder  months. 

Food  may  be  scattered  over  the  surface  and  allowed  to  fall  to  the  bottom,  or  it  may  be  placed  in  a 
little  tray  or  dish  suspended  a  few  inches  below  the  surface.  The  advantage  of  the  former  method  is 
that  the  fish  have  to  seek  their  food  and  take  it  more  slowly;  the  disadvantage  is  that  the  unconsumed 
food  is  not  easily  removable  and  the  amount  can  not  readily  be  estimated.  The  advantage  of  the  latter 
method  is  the  fish  may  be  more  closely  watched  when  feeding,  the  proper  amount  of  food  can  be 
more  accurately  determined,  and  the  unconsumed  food  is  not  left  to  pollute  the  water  and  can  be  easily 
removed. 

A  nicely  balanced  aquarium  requires  but  little  attention.  So  long  as  the  water  remains  pure, 
no  change  is  necessary;  some  of  the  most  successful  aquaria  go  for  several  years  without  a  complete 
renewal  of  the  water;  and  all  that  is  required  is  to  replace  the  water  lost  by  evaporation.  When 
water  becomes  foul  through  neglect  or  ignorance,  the  fish  should  be  removed  to  another  vessel,  the 
plants  thoroughly  washed  in  running  water,  and  the  aquarium  emptied,  cleansed,  and  filled  with  pure 
water.  When  oxygenation  is  imperfect  and  the  fish  are  suffering  (as  shown  by  their'  restlessness, 
evident  discomfort,  labored  respiration,  and  efforts  to  get  air  at  the  surface),  the  water  may  be  aerated 
by  dipping  it  up  and  pouring  it  back  from  a  height  of  a  foot  or  more,  fiesh  water  may  be  introduced, 
and  a  more  adequate  plant  growth  should  be  provided.  It  is  necessary  to  cleanse  the  sides  of  the 
aquarium  of  algal  and  other  growths  from  time  to  time,  in  order  to  afford  a  good  view  of  the  fish. 
Accumulations  of  animal  and  vegetable  waste  matter  on  the  bottom  must  be  removed  frequently—- 
preferably each  day;  this  is  done  most  conveniently  by  means  of  a  glass  tube  about  half  an  inch  in 


102 


diameter  into  which  particles  are  drawn  by  first  closing  one  end  with  the  finger,  or  a  flexible  rubber 
tube  used  as  a  siphon.     The  siphon  will  be  useful  whenever  it  is  desired  to  draw  down  the  water. 

In  the  limited  quarters  of  the  ordinary  house  aquarium,  goldfish  grow  but  little  and  may  remain 
practically  the  same  size  for  years.  Spawning  rarely  occurs,  and  the  propagation  of  goldfish  in  such 
a  vessel  is  not  to  be  expected.  In  the  largest  practicable  home  or  school  aquarium,  if  one  or  two 
pairs  of  medium  size  fish  are  kept  and  all  the  conditions  are  favorable,  spawning  may  take  place.  As 
soon  as  the  eggs  are  observed,  they  should  be  put  into  another  aquarium  or  separated  from  the  fish  by 
a  glass  or  wire  mesh  screen.  The  eggs  and  young  are  to  be  cared  for  as  elsewhere  described. 


LITERATURE  CITED 

MATSUBARA,  S. 

1906.  The  culture  of  fish  and  other  water  products  in  Japan. — Proceedings  of  the  Third  Inter- 
national Fishery  Congress,  Vienna,  1905.  Goldfish,  pages  314-318,  1  colored  plate 
with  5  figures. 

MATSUBARA,  S. 

1909.  Goldfish  and  their  culture  in  Japan. — Proceedings  of  the  Fourth  International  Fishery  Con- 
gress, Washington,  1908. 

MlTSUKURI,    K. 

1905.  The  cultivation  of  marine  and  fresh-water  animals  in  Japan. — Bulletin  of  the  U.  S.  Bureau 
of  Fisheries  for  1904,  pages  257-289.  The  goldfish,  pages  266-275,  4  plates. 

RYDER,  JOHN  A. 

1893.  The  inheritance  of  modifications  due  to  disturbances  of  the  early  stages  of  development, 
especially  in  the  Japanese  domesticated  races  of  gold-carp. — Proceedings  of  the 
Academy  of  Natural  Sciences  of  Philadelphia.  1893,  pages  75-94. 

WATASE.  S. 

1887.  On  the  caudal  and  anal  fins  of  goldfish. — Journal  of  the  Science  College,  Imperial  Univer- 
sity, Tokyo,  Japan,  vol.  I,  pages  247-267,  3  plates. 

105 


INDEX 


PAGE 

Age  of  goldfish 54 

Air-bladder  disease 86 

Algae  food  for  goldfish 66 

in    aquaria 99 

ponds 63, 66 

America,  Japanese  goldfish  in 93 

Ammen,    Rear-Admiral 93 

Anacharis  in  aquaria 99 

Annelid  worms  food  for  goldfish 66 

Aquaria 97-103 


Aquarium  Society  of  Philadelphia 

Arrowhead  in  aquaria 

Artificial  decolorization  of  goldfish 

fertilization  of  eggs    .    • 

Autumn   goldfish 


95 
99 

48 

57 
40 


Bacterial  diseases  of  goldfish 85 

Baird,   Prof.    Spencer   F 93 

Balanced  aquaria 98,99,100,102 

Breeding  age  of   goldfish 54 

habits  of  goldfish 54 

Breeds  of  Japanese  goldfish' 15-43 

Brocaded  goldfish 43 


Capped  goldfish "       30 

Carassius  auratus 15 

Care  of  aquaria       97-103 

brood   fish 53 

eggs 57,58,59,60 

fish      53,61,67,72,102,103 

young  fish 67, 68,  72 

Caudal  fin,  types  of 22 

Celestial 38 

Cement    ponds 50 

Ceratophyllum  for  aquaria  and  ponds 56, 99 

Cereal  foods  for  goldfish 66 

Changes  in  color 67 

Characteristics  of  Chinese    goldfish 10 

Japanese  goldfish 10 

Chinchiri,  disease  of  goldfish 86 

Chinese    goldfish 10 

Chirosobu,  disease  of  goldfish 86 

Cladocera,  food  for  goldfish 61 

Collection  of  crustacean  food 63, 64, 65 

cntomostraca      63, 64, 65 

Color  changes  in  goldfish 67,  77,  78 

of  young 67 


107 


Common  goldfish 

Copepoda,  food  for  goldfish 

parasitic   on  goldfish 

Corn  meal,  food  for  goldfish 

Criteria  of  goldfish 

Crossing,   opportunities  for   further 

Crucian  carp 

Crustacean  food  for  goldfish  .    .    -61,62.63.64,67, 

parasites   of   goldfish 

Cultivation  of  crustaceans        61,62, 

food 61,62, 

Culture  for  profit 

Cyclops,  food  for  goldfish 

Cyprinus   auratus 

Cypris,  food  for  goldfish 


21 
61 
85 
66 
87 
94 
15 

68,69 
84,85 
63,71 
63,71 
95 
61 
15 
61 

61 
35 
72 
87 
92 
38 
72 
57 
83 

goldfish 83-86 

Dragon-eyes      35 

Dutch  lion-head 32 


Daphnia,  food  for  goldfish  •  • 
Demekin 

culture 

points   of  quality     .    .    .    . 

prices 

Deme-ranchu 

culture 

Development  of  goldfish  eggs 
Diseases  of  eggs  


Eel-grass  in  aquaria 

Eggs 

diseases  of  •  • 
hatching  period 
laying  .... 


99 

57-60 
83 
60 

53,  57 


Eggs  losses 83 

number  laid       59 

in   pint 59 

size       59 

Enemies  of  goldfish 65, 72 

Entomostraca,  food  for  goldfish,  61,  62.  63,  64,  65, 67, 68, 69 

Equipment  of  goldfish  establishments 45 

Evolution  of  goldfish  varieties 17,  19 

Exhibitions  of  goldfish 87,88,89,90 

Exports  of  goldfish 92 

Fanwort  in  aquaria 99 

Fashions  in  goldfish 87 

Feeding  goldfish  in  aquaria 101,  102 

Fertilization  of  eggs      57 

ponds 62, 63 

Flatheads 30 

Food  and  feeding  of  goldfish  in  ponds    ....  61-70,  72 

aquaria     .    .    .      101,102 

collection  of 63, 64, 65 

cultivation  of 61,62,63 

of  young  fish 67 

Fringetail  goldfish       24,  39 

wakin     39 

Frogs   injurious  to  fish 72 

Frost  injurious  to  eggs  and  fish 72,84 

Fungus  on  eggs  and  fish 84 

Gastropods,  food  for  goldfish 66 

in  aquaria      100 

Geneology  of  goldfish  varieties 19, 20 

General  aspects  of  goldfish  culture 9 

principles  of  breeding 48 


108 


Gilded  karass    • 
Gold  carp      •   • 
Golden    karass 
Goldfish  age 


15 

IS 

IS 

54 

aquaria  •    •    -97-103 

breeding  establishments 45 

principles 48 

breeds 15,19,21^3 

culture  in  America 95 

diseases      83-86 

eggs 57-60 

evolution 17 

exhibitions 87,88,89,90 

exported 92 

farms      45,46 

food 61-70,101,102 

growth 61,74,77 

industry      12 

in  Japan,  importance 9 

introduction       11 

origin      11 

output     90,91 

prices       90,91,92 

output   in   Japan 90, 91 

parasites 84,85 

prices      90,91,92 

sales 90,91,92 

societies 95 

trade 90,91,92 

transportation      79, 80 

varieties 15, 19, 21-13 

vendors      9,92 

Greenhouses,   goldfish  culture   in 96 


Growth  of  crustacean   food 62,63 

goldfish 61,74,77,103 

Hail  injurious  to  eggs  and  fish 60,  72, 84 

Hatching 53,60 

period 60 

temperature 60 

Hen  eggs,  food  for  goldfish 66, 70 

Hibernaclc 70 

Hiragashira 30 

Home   goldfish   aquaria 97-103 

Hooded  goldfish      30 

Hornwort  for  spawning  beds 56 

in   aquaria 

Hothouses,  goldfish  culture  in 96 

Importance  of  goldfish  in  Japan 

Importation  of  Japanese  goldfish 93,  94 

Incubation      53, 60 

Insects,  food  for  goldfish 66,69 

injurious   to    fish     • 65, 72 

in  plankton 65 

Introduction      

Japanese  goldfish  breeds 15.19,21^3 

characteristics 10 

importation 93,94 

in    America 93 

papers  on 105 

varieties       15,19,21-13 

importance  of  goldfish  to 9 


Kama,  disease  of  goldfish 
Karass 


85 

15 


109 


Kichigoro,    Mr.    A. 

Kinranshi       

Korean  goldfish 

Koriyama,  center  of  goldfish  culture 


43 
43 
28 

13 


goldfish  farms 46,90 

methods   of    culture 57,61,67 

school 13,61 

Kuchigusari,  disease  of  goldfish 86 

Kurosobu,  disease  of  goldfish 86 

Landscape  gardens,  goldfish  in 10, 96 

Limnodrilus,  food  for  goldfish 66 

Lion-head      28,32 

goldfish      28, 32, 35 

Literature  cited 105 

Liukiu  goldfish 24 

Longtail    ranchu     40 

Loosestrife  in  aquaria 99 

Losses  of  eggs  and  fry 83, 84 

Ludwigia   in    aquaria 99 

Management  of  aquaria 97-103 

goldfish    establishments      ....          45 

Maruko 28 

Mating 53,54 

Matsubara,   Prof.    S. 8,  39, 42, 43,  79, 88, 105 

Memuki,  disease  of  goldfish 86 

Mijinko,  crustacean  food  .   .  61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 67, 69,  70,  71 

Milfoil  for  spawning  beds 56 

in  aquaria 99 

Mitsukuri,  Prof.  K. 8,27,48,62,79,105 

Mollusks,  food  for  goldlisli 66 

in    aquaria 100 


Mosquito  larva;  as  goldfish  food    •    • 

Mud  ponds 

Mussels   in  aquaria 

Myriophyllum  for   spawning   beds 

in    aquaria 


56, 65, 69,  72 
...  49 
.  .  .  100 
.  .  .  56 
.  .  .  99 


Nagasaki   goldfish       .... 
Naginata,   disease  of  goldlisl: 
Net    for    collecting    food 


24 
8S 

64 


Oranda  shishigashira 32 

breeding  largest  fish 57 

culture 69,70 

egg  capacity 59 

points  of  quality 8<X 

prices 92 

sorting  fry 75 

Origin  of  goldfish  in  Japan 11 

Japanese  goldfish  varieties 19 

Ostracoda,   food  for  goldfish 61 

Output  of  goldfish  farms 46, 90, 91 

Parasites  of  goldfish 84,85 

Parent  fish 53, 57 

Pest  in  goldfish 86 

Piaropus  in  aquaria 99 

Plants  in  aquaria 99 

Polyphemus,  food   for  goldfish 61 

Ponds     49-51,55 

Pond  weed  in  aquaria 99 

Popeye  goldfish       35,38 

ranchu 38 

Potamogeton  in  aquaria 99 


110 


Preparation  of  food 65 

Prices    of   goldfish         89,90,91,92 

Principles  of  goldfish  breeding 48 

Product   of  goldfish    farms 46,90,91 

Profit,  goldfish  culture  for 95 

Protozoan  diseases  of  goldfish 85 

Quality  standards  in  goldfish 87,  88,  89 

Rains   injurious   to   fry 72 

Ranclui        28 

culture  65,69,70,74 

exhibition       88,89 

points  of   quality 89 

prices       «9, 92 

Rate  of  growth 77 

Reversion  of   varieties 23,  73,  78,  79 

Ryder,  Prof.  John  A 17.22.23,105 

Ryukin 24 

culture 71 

points   of  quality 88 

prices       92 

sorting   fry 75 

Sagittaria   in   aquaria 99 

Sales  of  goldfish 75,90,91,92 

Salix    for  spawning  beds 56 

Saprolegnia 84 

Scavengers  in  aquaria 100 

Schools  of  goldfish  culture 13 

Seal,  Mr.  \Vni.  P. 93 

Selecting  brood  fish    .  • 53,  54 

fish    .   .   .   .' 73,74,75,76 


Selling  young  fish 75 

Shiragashira      30 

Shishi      35 

Shishigashira 28,32 

ranchu 28 

Shubunkin      42 

Shukin 40 

Silkworms  food  for  goldfish 66 

Snails  in  aquaria 100 

Sorting  fish .    73,  74,  75, 76 

Spawning  beds 56 

habits      54,57 

in   aquaria 103 

ponds      55. 57 

season 53 

temperatures 57 

Speckled  goldfish 42 

Sports      78 

Spotted  goldfish 42 

Standards  of  quality  in  goldfish S7,  88,  89 

Tadpoles    in    aquaria 100 

Tails   of   goldfish 22 

Telescope-fish        35, 38 

Temperature  for  hatching 60 

spawning       57 

Tokin       30 

Tokyo  goldfish  farms 46 

methods  of  culture 56,  70,  74 

school  of  culture 13 

Trade  in  goldfish 87,90,91,92 

Transportation  of  goldfish 79,80,94 

Tubifex,    food   for  goldfish 66 


111 


Turtles  injurious  to  goldfish 


72 


(.Instability  of  varieties 73,  78,  79 

Urata,  Mr.  J. 8 

Vallisncria   for  aquaria 

Varieties  of  goldfish 15,19,21-43 

Vermilion  variegated  goldfish 42 

Viviparus,  food  for  goldfish 66 


21 

71 

87 

92 

Watase,  Prof.   S. 8,  22, 105 


Wakin 

culture 

points   of   quality 
prices 


Water  fleas,  food  for  goldfish 61,63,64,65 

hyacinth  in  aquaria 99 

plants   in   ponds 51,56,63 

supply 49,  50,  51 

99 

39 

66 

30 

15 

56 


weed  in  aquaria     .    .    .    . 

Watonai      

\Yheat  food  for  goldfish    •    •    •    • 

\Vhiteheads 

Wild  goldfish 

Willow  roots  for  spawning  beds 


Winds  injurious  to  eggs  and   fry 60,72 

Winter   pond 70 

Young  fish,  behavior      67 

care      67, 68,  72 

color 67 


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